What 2016 Taught Me

I came in to the year 2016 with one distinct goal (or "resolution" if you will): spend a year in God's truth and see what growth follows.

More specifically, I wanted to be in God's word all 366 days of 2016. I wanted to read at least one chapter of my Bible every day. Throughout college, I've had up and down seasons with reading my Bible. I've had months where I'm in it consistently and months where I'm out of it consistently.

In college, it's really easy to get distracted by what's around you. There's always people to be around and always work that needs to get done. It's easy to get overwhelmed, and it's easy to make excuses.

Being intentional and creating a habit of spending time with Jesus every day prepared me for an emotionally tolling year, that yielded immense growth as a result. Through the following challenges, I learned that there are silver linings to everything life throws at you:

1) Death.
Death seems to be very present this year, as many have experienced heartbreak hearing of their favorite celebrities dying far too soon.

Just a few days in to the new year, four guys I went to high school with drowned in a tragic canoeing accident. One happened to be a guy I knew most of my life, growing up playing baseball together. Another was a good friend that I spent a lot of time with during my junior high and high school years at our church youth group. Through church, I became friends with his mom. Not only did I feel the devastation that the accident brought me and my friends, but I saw just how tragic it was for his family. Over the next couple of weeks, more deaths occurred. And it felt like I was just trapped in this darkness that would never pass.
2) Suicide.
A number of suicides occurred near me. As someone that has dealt with depression and anxiety, I think the sadness hits people like me in a way that may be different from others. We know what the battle is like and we want to see other people overcome it. And when they don't, it breaks our hearts.
3) Loneliness.
Transferring into Valparaiso was a much greater social challenge than I ever expected. Gone were the days of being around friends all the time. Instead, I've spent much time feeling isolated, alone and on my own. I didn't have anyone to live with and I had to move in to a studio apartment on my own. I spent a lot of weekends feeling cooped-up and bummed.
4) Physical Illness.
I was diagnosed with Graves' disease at the end of September and was unable to exercise for months. I had an allergic reaction to my medication that lasted two weeks and brought immense pain to my body. Some days, some of my bones felt broken. The illness itself brought on a great deal of fatigue that made classes harder than they ever needed to be. In addition, my sister tore her ACL and had to miss most of her junior softball season and my grandma has had some health concerns of her own.
5) Overall Anxiety.
Having anxiety, it can be difficult to find the positives when things aren't going your way. Throughout the year I felt the weight of all these things crashing down, and in turn it brought uncertainty to me at times. Graves' is known to increase anxiety, and in the back-half of the summer, I started to really panic about going back to school and returning to the isolation.


I listed off these challenges because I think everyone reading this can relate to at least one of them. At least one of these problems probably nagged you in 2016.

But here I am, standing tall at the end of it. And I can honestly say that each of these things, allowed me to grow and it taught me one big overarching message.

If I do everything that God wants me to do, what in the world do I have to worry about?

In the midst of the storms that rapidly flooded in, God was there to show me that he loved me every single day. I was reminded of his truth every single day. I was reminded that he was there in my battles, every single day. Meanwhile, God healed me physically and mentally from all these wounds.

I knew that God wanted me to be in his word, growing every day. Each Bible story taught me something different and unique, and I read a lot of encouraging verses and passages along the way. Throughout the year, God improved me in little ways, and I know that I started thinking differently as a result, looking for the positives and trying to find God in the little things. God is there in every single situation. I had the most positive-thinking year of my life.

So if God can do this all in my life, I know that he can certainly do the same in your life. He can bring healing and comfort where it is needed.

My suggestion? Try to spend 2017 hanging on the words of our Father in heaven. Try to get in to that Bible every day; you won't regret it. I guarantee that.

Whatever you decide, I hope that 2017 is a wonderful year for you. I hope that the personal changes that you want to make are able to be made and result in you being happier.

If you decide that you want to spend 2017 in God's word, go ahead and let me know. I would love help and encourage any way that I can. You are loved!

The Gospel According to Buddy the Elf

It seems that there's an ongoing power struggle throughout the Christmas season.

Should we be putting up Santa decorations or Nativity scenes? Do the tales of Kris Kringle distract us from the true meaning of Christmas?

Well today, what I'm saying to you is this: maybe there are biblical themes within the stories of Saint Nick, and Jesus' light can be shown through such art. Which brings us to today's movie examination....

Yep, my favorite Christmas movie, Elf!

In no way is Elf a Christian movie, but Elf contains some biblical themes that you might have missed, if you weren't looking for them.

Buddy the Elf is sent from the North Pole to the human world, to walk about life as a human. Sound familiar? Jesus didn't come to Earth as a god. In some ways, Jesus was a fish-out-of-water, and many didn't believe that he actually was God. Buddy's claims of knowing Santa Claus and working as an elf in Santa's workshop make him sound certifiably insane to those around him. Buddy is referred to as "the deranged elf-man" by Walter. All this, while trying to share the joy of Christmas with the people he cares about.

Jesus was put on a cross for committing "blasphemy," even though he was in fact the "King of the Jews." Though Jesus and Buddy came to different parts of the Earth, sharing different messages, each was teaching a gospel that raised some eyebrows. 

Buddy did not come to New York to be crucified. He came to build a relationship with his estranged father, and show him the joy and happiness of Christmas, while showings acts of love and kindness to others. Along the way, he stumbles upon Jovie, who is "just trying to get through the holidays." Buddy presents the message of Christmas cheer to her, which is best spread by "singing loud for all to hear." The message is quickly rejected, and Buddy is told to be quiet and to stop singing.

Over time however, Buddy starts to build a relationship with Jovie, which eventually leads to her standing up singing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" in front of a big crowd in downtown New York City. I find this similar to when we as people share the gospel of Jesus with others. In most cases, the person that receives the message is going to reject it immediately, but over time God can work in their hearts and bring them to wanting to have a relationship with Him. When someone comes to Christ, they tend to immediately be fired-up about it, and they want to share the good news with everyone. Jovie finds her Christmas spirit and wants to ignite the spirits of others.

Buddy also brings joy to Walter, Michael and Emily and helps bring them together as a family. Buddy and Michael show Walter that there's more to life than work, and Walter's act of self-sacrificing his job for the good of Buddy converts Walter from "naughty" to "nice."

Best of all though, the scene that still gives me chills is the scene where Santa flies over the group of carolers, to which the whole crowd and disbelieving television reporter Charlotte Dennon look up in awe. This makes me imagine what it will be like the day that Jesus finally returns, riding in on a chariot, as people will look on and think, "he truly is real!" 

Sadly, the best clip I could find on the internet cuts this wondrous scene short. But next time you watch Elf, try to think about some of these things! In no way is Buddy Jesus, but in some ways, Buddy is Jesus-like. To say that someone is a Christian is to say that one is Christ-like.

Though I do not think the writers of the film intentionally did this, I do believe that there are Christian themes to look for and enjoy in Elf. The whole story of Santa is based around believing and has some similarities to faith (The Santa Claus 2 comes to mind!). So I'd challenge you to look for such things while you watch your favorite Christmas classics in the coming days, and maybe just maybe the birth of Christ and the generosity of Santa Claus can coexist this holiday season.

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."

-Hebrews 11:1

Is there a Christmas movie you think has biblical themes (Nativity Story doesn't count!)? What is it? Let me hear your thoughts in the comments! Or on Twitter @vellvita7.

Merry Christmas!