How is it already October?!
This is a picture of me at Grandfather Mountain, right outside of Boone, last summer. I didn’t snap a picture from my most recent trip to Boone but but I love how this picture shows the beautiful mountains in the background!
I don't know about y’all, but this time of year is my absolute favorite! When October hits, (in the south especially) I start to crave the cooler temperatures the change in seasons brings. There is a simple joy that comes with drinking my hot coffee outside in sixty degree weather, breaking out the fall clothes, and day trips to the mountains.
I took a little day trip recently - my heart holds a special place for the mountains of Boone, North Carolina. Appalachian State University is where I went to college and as a result, I lived in Boone for a couple of years. My best friend Amanda and I returned together for the first time since we graduated 9+ years ago. What’s kind of wild is how it feels so long ago but at the same time, it feels as if it were yesterday.
We hit up a few of our nostalgic spots and realized how so much has changed, and how so much has stayed the same. I can honestly say the same about our friendship and our lives. So much change and newness, but also so much familiarity. We went to Come Back Shack (IYKYK), we did some shopping, walked around King Street, and talked about some of our favorite things we did during the time we lived there. It was such a fun trip that refreshed my soul!
One thing that blows my mind when I think back on my life then, is that I wanted absolutely nothing to do with God when I was in college. I told myself that I would take a relationship with Him seriously when I was ready to get married and have a family. For me, college was all about fun and living for myself, but you know when you tell God your plans and He laughs because He has something better in mind? Yeah, same.
As I was driving back to Charlotte from our day trip in Boone, I was reminded of this thought I’ve had a few times since graduating college and leaving Boone. I believe God was using my time in the mountains as a set up for the mountains he was about to move in my life. WOAH, reading that out loud gives me chills. I don’t think this is just a coincidence, I believe God knew what He was doing.
A little context: two months after I graduated college - God completely wrecked me and got my attention. I won’t share all the details of what led me to that place, but giving up my fight and giving into the One who saved me from myself was the best decision I have ever made. I think there is something really special about the fact that I went to college in the mountains, and God started to move mountains in my life right after I graduated and left the Blue Ridge Mountains.
What I want to leave y’all with today is hope. God was making room in my life for a setup, I couldn’t see it then but I can see that so clearly now. He knew my future and He surprised me in the best way. I’ve experienced God moving mountains in my life in the last 9+ years, this last year of my life, and even in the last few days! My hope for you is that you are encouraged and will start to see God move little or big mountains in your life this week.
I hope October is good to you!
-Tasha