An Unbroken Chain.

Do you ever look back on your life and think, how did I get here???

I'm sure you have. I think it's natural to reflect on the things that have led you to where you are today, and the things that have shaped you to be who you are.

I've always been interested in the Holocaust era of history. During my junior year, Holocaust survivor and Minnesotan Henry Oertelt came to my high school and shared some of his incredible life experiences. I remember being so enthralled with his story that I bummed $10 from someone (which I probably never paid back, now that I think about it), to purchase his book:  An Unbroken Chain: My journey through the Nazi Holocaust. He even signed the inside cover.

It was an obviously sad story, but still I was attracted to the idea that there were these links in the chain of his life that were imperative to his survival of Auschwitz and other concentration camps. Growing up, I loved the concept of fate/destiny/serendipity. I just knew in my heart of hearts that there was this mysterious...something that linked seemingly random events together into meaningful and significant moments.

Lately I've been a bit reflective on my own journey to where I am today. In a way, I'm living a life I never dreamed of; yet, it's exactly what I wanted.

Some links in my chain that I'm grateful for:

• Growing up on a farm with a hard-working family. While I didn't always (often) enjoy it at the time, I'm so grateful for learning how to put in an honest day's work. I've learned a lot of life lessons from tough days on the farm, like seeing the tangible benefits of discipline. 
• My parents. Along with teaching me about hard work, they taught me how to save and spend appropriately. I hated saving the birthday and Christmas money I received every year, unable to spend any of it. But when freshman year of college rolled around, and I had to pay for expensive textbooks, tuition, and a dorm room, I was incredibly grateful.
• Uncommon experiences with other cultures:
• My family hosted a Brazilian foreign exchange student while in high school (something I still wonder about to this day - we were definitely not the type of family to sign up for something like this!) This created a new interest for me - learning about other countries.
• When I joined staff, I was in a core group of 7 other women to connect with. Five of these woman had just returned from STINT, all over the world. For six weeks I got to hear story after story of God at work all over the world. I think that is a huge reason I said yes to doing the WSN Ops role at work.

 There are a lot of other links in my chain I'd love to tell you about, but you get the idea. If you've got some time this week, I encourage you to think about what links in your chain have led you to where you are today. It has been really encouraging for me to look back and see God's hand at work in my life, especially in the midst of transition and change.