Setbacks and setforwards

Much has happened since my last post. Grad school is coming along. I'm staying extremely busy and am trying to make up for my shortcoming at the beginning of the semester. I have a midterm for Quantitative Methods and I'm not quite sure how well I'll do. Much prayer is appreciated.

I finally signed my contract for ROTC. My guard unit exists no longer in its former state and has begun transformation. I will not be going to Abilene any longer. From now on, I will be going to Waco once a month.

Spiritually, I need improvement and encouragement. I have found a great church and small group with which to get involved! I'm trying to build stronger relationships and find my core group of friends. There are so many people, activities, and resources. The issue is not gettig overwhelmed.

So, onto the big news...No, I'm not engaged. But I did dislocate my left shoulder this past Friday. It's the first time I had ever dislocated anything. Wasn't really a big fan of it. I injured it while mtn biking at Lake Bryan. Excruciating pain. When I finally made it to a hospital, x-rays showed that I had a slight fracture. The doctor told me that surgery was not required but that my injury would be a persist for a couple weeks longer due to the chip.

I definitely wouldn't recommend dislocating anything. After it happened and I was laying face downon the trail I was left with different thoughts running through my mind. The first of which was, 'Well, at least my sunglasses didn't break." But then I thought, "ow."

How messed up is that?

Fortunately, I had some awesome friends who were with me at the time and were nothin but an extreme blessing. They put up with my lack of movement, mycomplaints of pain, missed dinner, and ruined Friday night. While at the hospital, they took turns visiting with me in the ER and keeping me company. After we left the hospital, we all went to dinner and ended the eventful MTN BIKE trip.

I am thankful for my friends that God has placed in my life, especially during this time. THey have called to check up on me, volunteered their time and services to see if there was anything I needed, have been persistant to ensure that I take care of myself and wear my should sling, and have made a "Get Well Soon" cake.

I continue to see how it's all about putting things in perspective. I'm alive. I'm healthy (save for some minor injuries). I have been given some awesome friends. Now I've been thinking...How will God use this for His Glory? How do I see His promises displayed in this? What does this show me about the character and worth of God? and how can I take joy in it?

I will meditate on these thoughts. I know the answer. Often times, what we know in our heads, our hearts don't want to follow suit. May it not be so this time. Until my next corrspondence...

Continue In Excellence,
jdmerx