Growing up at Lincoln Lutheran came with numerous blessings. Providing a faith based education, a chance for change of character, and opportunity that escapes many. Seven years spent with the same people, in the same building, and doing the same thing gave countless key moments to grow. Through competing against adversity (and all the silly teen problems that occur in the adolescent process) everyone knows adversity will teach you more valuable life lessons than a life filled with ‘perfection.’ As nothing more than a sinner, my time at Lincoln Lutheran came with countless accounts of hardships, and life lessons learned through taking the long way around. One in particular being the transition to my freshman year of High School. I found myself starting off a bit rocky. I failed to see the end goal I should have for a beneficial education, and decisions I made continue to impact my present and future. Your first year of high school is crucial. Here’s a piece of advice. You are presented with a clean slate, a new beginning. Take advantage of that. Keep your future in mind and you’ll avoid spending four years of your life discovering something that was standing right in front of you. Now, it’s the end of my senior year. I am no where near the fourteen year old girl I used to be. I feel prepared to begin a new adventure in my life. One filled with ambition and education. Psalm 94:19 says, “In the multitude of anxieties within me, your comforts delight my soul.” Finding comfort when dealing with adversity can be one of the strenuous challenges a person can face. It is difficult to always see the light at the end of the tunnel, and incredibly unrealistic to remain optimistic in all aspects of your life. Lincoln Lutheran gave me the tools to learn how to avoid allowing worries to swallow you whole and refrain you from living in the moment. Never lose that spark of hope, knowing we can do nothing on our own. We may fail repeatedly, but that should never determine whether or not we decide to give up. I failed many times. At some points, I refused to brush myself right away. I wanted to remain believing my self worth was nothing, and believed I was capable of only failure. When it comes to learning and obeying christ, failure is one of the most important parts of growing. I know now that I will fail, but I am confident in my forgiving heavenly father, who provides costly grace for all people. I may have failed to see the end game my first day of High School, but my vocation path will guide me for the rest of my life. Entering my freshman year of college will be different. A change to do it all over again. I may always be destined for initial failure; but with a loving heavenly father we are all capable of greatness.