To All of Those Who Are Starting a New Chapter of Life
- Shelby Dunn
- Jul 2, 2023
- 9 min read
Dear Fearfully and Wonderfully Made People,
I am referring to you all as such because that is what you are! Sometimes we all need a reminder of that. I have
been planning on writing this for quite some time now, but I have continued to put it off over and over again. However, sometimes the Holy Spirit puts a foot down and says "NOW is the time!!!!!" God is never wrong, so here goes!
As you have read in the title, this is for all of those who are starting something new. A blank canvas! A new season! Whether it be starting college, moving to a new place, starting a new job, something else, or all of the above, change can be a very hard thing. It can also be exciting, scary, and just about everything in between! As I am writing this to you, I am a recently graduated college student who is very grateful for all that has happened up to this point in my life and for all that I have been gifted. However, the me at this time four years ago would not agree. If you haven't, I highly suggest reading my post titled "To the State FFA Officer Candidate Who Wasn't Selected" before reading on. At that time in my life I was getting ready to start a new chapter of my life and go to college. I was SO excited for what was to come! But at the same time, I was going through a massive heartbreak and dealing with many changes coming my way. My relationship with God was not at its finest. That is a season of my life that I do not look fondly upon. Little did I know that as soon as I stepped foot on the campus of Chadron State College, John 16:20 would become a reality in my life. And it would be in ways beyond measure!
"Amen, amen I say to you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy" John 16:20
Before I go on, I want to reflect on two Scripture passages because they are what really inspired me to write
this! The first is 1 Samuel 20. This passage talks about the relationship between King David and his very good friend Jonathan. The two of them had a very strong and holy friendship between them. It was so strong that Jonathan planned to stand in David's place when Jonathan's father wanted to kill David. His father wanted to kill David because he was a threat to Jonathan becoming king. Jonathan stood in his place with courage and total faith in the Lord. He then went out to the open country where David was hiding and told David that the Lord was sending him away.
"And in his love for David, Jonathan renewed his oath to him, because he loved him as he loved himself." 1 Samuel 20:17
"Go in peace, in keeping with what the two of us have sworn by the name of the Lord: 'The Lord shall be between you and me, and between your offspring and mine forever." 1 Samuel 20:42
The second passage I want to reflect on is Luke 1:39-56. At this time in the New Testament, two women have just gotten the surprise of their lives! Elizabeth has just been informed that she will have a son, even though she had been barren her entire life and was very old. The archangel Gabriel appeared to her husband, Zechariah, and told him that Elizabeth would bear a son. He was to name him John and he would prepare the way for many people. Zechariah, became speechless until the day John was born because he doubted what the archangel Gabriel had to say. I can't imagine how Elizabeth felt after realizing her husband was suddenly mute and she would finally have a baby! Shortly after, her relative, Mary, had been told that she is to be the one to bring the Messiah into the world! The Israelites had been waiting for the Messiah to come since the beginning! Mary's response to the archangel Gabriel was a bit different than that of Zechariah's. Mary responded with a wholehearted yes, knowing full well what she was saying yes to! Her betrothed, Jospeh, was going to divorce Mary quietly after she broke the news to him. However, Joseph had been chosen to be the protector and foster father of the child Jesus, and the archangel Gabriel later informed him of this in a dream. These two different women had just received some major life news! But since they were cousins, Mary did what any girl would do. She went to her cousin Elizabeth's house to share in the joy, fear, and everything in between with her dear friend! Elizabeth even regarded Mary as "the mother of my Lord" and said that as soon as Mary arrived, baby John the Baptist leaped for joy! Mary then went on to say how God has blessed her with the infant in her womb.
"He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb, and he will turn many of the children of
Israel to the Lord their God. He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of fathers toward children and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord" Luke 1:15-17
"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Luke 1:31-33
"For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy." Luke 1:44
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name." Luke 1:46-49
Both of these passages are completely different. Completely different circumstances, times, and people. However, they do have one amazing thing in common. Both of them portray an example of holy friendship! That is exactly how God totally rocked my world in the midst of my personal heartbreak.
I still remember this like it was yesterday! I have found that the really important moments in life are the ones
that are the hardest to forget. The week before classes started, my parents and I all drove down to Chadron so I could move into my dorm room and get a feel for where my classes were at. We found my dorm room, my roommate came by (we had already met a few years prior), and started unpacking my stuff. While my parents were there we drove through town, went out to my Aunt and Uncle's house, and made sure I was as ready as I could be for the coming semester. On Sunday we went to church as a family and after a few tearful hugs, my parents left for home. And BAM! I was by myself seven hours from home. But very soon, I would no longer be lonely! At the end of church, an amazing, wonderful, beautiful woman named Amy told me about this place called the Newman House. She mentioned that they would be having a New Student Brunch later that day and I decided that I should go. When I got to the brunch, I sat next to this dark haired, dark eyes girl who was wearing bright red lipstick. As I like to say, we started talking and never stopped! That girl would become my best friend April! That night we went to Night of Country Swing together and made some really awesome memories! (She will know which memory I am thinking of haha!)
Before I go on, I want to share something that is kind of an untold truth about me. Before I went to college, I
didn't really have friends. I did have friends, but they all went to different schools and we weren't super close. I had never had a best friend before and having one felt so awesome! April was the one who really helped me to heal my heart, and I am incredibly grateful that God put her in my life. Pretty soon, April and I spent every day together at Newman. We would do homework, cook, watch movies, play games, paint, and just talk! I have lost count of how many times we have played The Game of Life! Our friendship has certainly had its trials, even times when it was hard to talk to each other. But we had formed our friendship not just by circumstance, but with faith and it has only continued to grow. In fact, April is no longer just my best friend. A few years later in the spring of 2022, April got confirmed in the church and become my first goddaughter!I could write a whole book on April and I's friendship with all of the memories we share and things that happened along the way. However I will sum it up with this, real friendships are like stars. You can't always see them, but you always know they are there.
I also gained many other amazing friendships through my experiences at the Newman House. The former Newman House Director, Amy, quickly became one of my confidants and has been one of my biggest cheerleaders. She has also been one to share many The Office references with! (Amy, I'll kill you with kindness. Haha!) She calmly and patiently listened when I was going through tough times, and rejoiced with me in the good. My friend Caitlyn is someone who is very special to me, and I also met her through Newman at the beginning of my freshman year. She has always been someone I can count on for anything, especially a listening ear. Caitlyn later blessed me with an adorable nephew, Wesson, and my third goddaughter Reagan! I have made a handful of other wonderful friends through Newman such as Katelyn, Marcus, Adeline, Kara, Caleb, Minh, and Harrison. I could write pages about all of the friends I have made through Newman, and all of them are incredible people that God has blessed me with abundantly!
The friendships I made through the Newman House led me to work for an evangelization program called Totus
Tuus in the summer of 2021. I spent the summer teaching the faith to children between the ages of going into 1st grade-12th grade. It was the best summer of my life! During that entire summer God did wonders in my heart. It is amazing how being intentional about passing the faith on to others can form your heart and make you grow in your faith. I worked on a team with three other people, Kaelob, Liam, and Grace. These three people soon became very close friends not just because we had to work together, but because we wanted to! I thank God for leading me to that job and placing them in my life when he knew I needed them. Not only did I walk away with some new friends, but a lot of new doors had been opened in my life!
As I am sure you all know, our world today is not fond of Jesus or those who love Him. It can be difficult and sometimes lonely when so many people around us don't accept Jesus. This is why holy friendships are so important to have! Think back to the passages about David and Jonathan and Mary and Elizabeth. Each of them showed both great trial joy. True friendships are the ones that lead you to God through all things,
not away from Him.
So my advice to all of you who are starting a new chapter in life is to see it as an opportunity. You never know what doors are going to be opened or when someone amazing is going to be thrown into your path. It is crazy to me how one little thing done differently could have changed everything! Always remember that your worth and true identity is in God, and in Him only. Change is never easy, especially when there's a bit of sadness involved. However, the load is a lot heavier when you let God help you carry it and lead the way. My biggest takeaway is this. Find your people, but not just any people. Look for the holy friendships that will lead you closer to God. Life is hard, but we're not meant to go at it alone.
Find your tribe. Girls, find your bridesmaids before you find your husband. Guys, find your groomsmen before you find your wife. Find your Jonathan. Find your Mary. Find your David. Find your Elizabeth. Holy relationships are what make life worth it, because they are a glimpse into how much God loves us! I don't know for sure what my next season of life will look like. However, I will be keeping this in mind and in heart as I embark on whatever adventure God has in store for me!
With Love,
Shelby
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