This week was a big one. I completed my Old Testament Survey class, finished the 5 week church discipleship group I helped lead, and saw all of my summer project students and staff return, (and took 3 trips to the airport in the process).
I feel like I've accomplished quite a bit so far, and summer is only half over! I've been pleasantly surprised with the way things are turning out. Two years ago I was still new to the metro, new to my job, and didn't have many friends yet, so summer was really hard. I was a little apprehensive about being in Minneapolis again: nearly all of my coworkers leave town, non-work friends travel or are more busy than usually. This city of more than a million people can get pretty lonely. Plus, I thrive on having a set routine, so summer just throws me off my game.
One surprising element of my summer has been the great friendships I've made and continued to develop. A major lesson I've been learning this year is to take advantage of the opportunities God puts in front of me, even if they seem a bit scary or are hard to do. This has definitely been playing out in my friendships this year, especially in the last few weeks.
It takes time and effort to build new friendships. It's risky. You have to put yourself out there and you don't know how the other person will respond. You don't know them well enough to know what their likes/dislikes are, or where they draw boundaries on certain things, but learning them is part of the process. You can't go in pushing your own agenda, and you can't have crazy expectations. You are not in control.
Looking back, the timing could not have been more perfect in the development of my relationships this year, and this summer. Very rewarding to take continual steps of faith in this area and see what God will do with my willingness to say yes to the opportunities he puts in my path (disclaimer: this doesn't always go well! I have many of those stories, too!).
You never know how an opportunity will play out until you just jump in and see.
