2008

There are only a few short hours until 2008 is over and a new year arrives. I can't help but use this time to reflect back on what I've been through and also look ahead to new memories that will be made and new goals I hope to achieve. 

January of '08 marked a very important event in my life. I attended my first Passion Conference at the Nokia theater in L.A. This was life changing and something I will not soon forget (I now look ahead to January 2010 when the next conference is happening in Atlanta!!). 

The six months between January and June were filled with questions for me. As I was finishing my degree I was plagued with the wonderings of my future. Do I pursue a teaching credential? Do I even want to teach? I don't want to leave my job at the church! What do I do if I don't teach? Then a sequence of events took place which changed everything. 

My world was shaken a little bit when there was a shifting of positions at the church. Jared accepted the job as full time music pastor which meant he'd need a replacement at the Stream. This was a difficult change for me to cope with at first but God really used it to teach me some things about myself and about my relationship with Him. This new position for Jared opened the door for me to have a full time position at the church. I could continue 10 hours for the Stream while adding 20 more hours for the music ministry making me a full-fledged 40 hr/week ministry assistant. This opportunity arose just as I was realizing that I really did not want to be a teacher. Timing worked out perfectly for me to put my credential on hold should I ever want to pick it up again and finish it. Had I gone back to school in the fall I could not have accepted the full time position at church (and remained sane). And if I had completed my credential and then not gone into the classroom, it would have expired. So what was difficult and hard to understand became something really great for me!

In May I purchased my first car (with a little help from the grandparents)....and am well on my way to paying it off thanks to living at home rent free. "Little Blue" is a 2007 Honda Civic LX and I couldn't be more pleased with it! 

June was eventful for me as I graduated from CSUB with a Bachelors degree in Liberal Studies and went to work at the church full time the following Monday. Working full time was interesting to get used to. First getting used to being there all day rather than for a few hours at a time. But then (and still) learning how to best use my free time when I get home from work at 5:30. Without papers to write or books to read my evenings quickly became a bit lazier than I would like. Although it's been nice to have my time as my own- no professors telling me what to do at night or when to turn something in- I find the opposite end of the spectrum to be quite....boring. So it's my hope that 2009 will see better use of those evenings. Time spent on dates with my God or reading a good book. Something.....productive! 

I celebrated Independence Day the best way with none other than the Boasting Weak and Sanctus Real in concert. Jared and Mary Beth finally released their debut project and I had the joy of acting as their "PR girl" and also running their merch table at the Red, White, and Boom show. 

It's been a fun year seeing them play at various venues including Spirit West Coast Monterey! I volunteered for Hope Christian Bookstore with Lindsay Speece and Laurel Gholz. The three of us (and other volunteers) helped man the store at the festival while Jared and MB played several sets in the store throughout the day. It was fun to get back into my retail mode while my own "private concert" was performing! 

August marked my trip to Swaziland, Africa. This was a very special trip. I made some friends there whom I will never forget. I really would love to go back sometime and work with the younger children at the Care Points. We mainly worked on a retreat reinforcing sexual abstinance for about 200 high school aged Swazi girls. 

The beginning of November was busy as many of the staff were away to Israel- which I was just a hair bitter about ;o). It also was also when I finally made my much awaited trip to Nashville, Tennessee. Erin Landis, Heather Easter, and I visited Courtney Meadors in Nashville for three and a half days. The trip was short but we packed it full of everything from riding the General Jackson along Nashville's river to checking out the nightlife downtown. I had an amazing time and I'm already planning my next trip in 2009! 

I turned 23 in December and finished up my first semester as a Community Group Leader for the Stream. This was quite challenging. I'm so thankful for Kelli as my co-leader. It's been exciting to see how we complement each other and fill in spaces for one another. You know you've got a good friend when she can complete the thought you just can't get out....

And so there are the highlights of 2008. There were definitely ups and downs. Relationships formed and ended. People came in and out of my life. I hope December 2009 sees a more mature Laura Brown who has read her Bible consistently all year and, as a result, grown closer to her Lord. I hope the person I become is more humble, less selfish, and more productive......more others-centered and less self-centered. If you got this far, congratulations, by now you know me a little better! ;o)