Joy In The Midst of Struggles

As my birthday is approaching in 2 days, I like to reflect back on what this past year of being 23 years old had in store. I remember last year at this time I was in the stage of the unknown. I was in my last class of my credential and I did not know where the Lord wanted me to work or even if I was going to get a job that school year. For the first two months of being 23 all I did was sit at the computer and send job application after job application. Little did I know the Lord was asking me to sit and be patient because he had the perfect job for me...a Special Education Kindergarten Teacher in Riverside. This was a HUGE step out of my comfort zone because I was thinking I would be teaching in Orange County and I thought I would teach more older kids. Well, let me tell you just when you think you know what you want the Lord bumps you and says "no, my dear Nicole, I have a better plan for you". So here I was taking a big step out of my comfort zone but it ended up being

A few months ago I was talking to my friend and her family about how awesome it would be if I could go visit my friend in New Zealand once her semester in college had ended. At the time, I was thinking oh thats a cool idea but it will never happen. How could I possibly go across the world all by myself? Welp...guess what Nicole...never say never because look it happened! I knew I would be fine once I landed on New Zealand territory but flying by myself across the world scared me to death. Let's be real I am a very independent person compared to most that have a physical disability but I still do need help with certain things. Like opening a tight water bottle or lifting my baggage off of the conveyor belt. How am I going to do those things all by myself. Ill tell you how by the strength of the Lord. All I did was pray for the Lord to be near me and keep me safe and the Lord provided through different individuals. On the way there I met a lady who was on the same layover in Fiji