Just a thought

This past year has been great.  This is my 4th year substituting. (Yes, I would have never imagined this, but this is my life.) I can say this has been my best year.  I've been thinking about why.  Is it because God is answering prayers that I prayed years ago and I now see them coming true? (I'm signed with an independent label with a major producer who has connections in the industry and who understands my life as a disciple and wants to push that to the fore front.  This is a prayer I prayed a couple of years ago.)  Also, I'm content.  I'm not looking back at when I was teaching full time and making a lot more money with benefits and enjoying that, but I'm enjoying where I am and meeting the different kids that I meet everyday and having the little interactions with them for the first time.  I love it.  I never thought that I would.  I think it's because my mindset as changed.  I changed how I saw my situation.  I no longer look at it with a "woe is me" attitude and grumble every time I step in a school or complain about everything.  I see it with a different mindset now.  Rom 12:2 talks about being transformed by the renewing of our minds then we can test and approve of what God's will is, His good and perfect will.  I have been practicing this and my mind has been changing so my situations have been changing and my heart and mind is more positive because I have been taking captive of my thoughts and making them obedient to Christ.  I am completely grateful for the challenges I have gone through over the past years and the things that are coming in my life.  Those challenges have helped me to grow up and mature.  I have been also seeing Christ deeper.  He is my best friend.  He is the kind of friend that you know already loves you completely and there is nothing you can do to gain it but you just have to accept it.  I'm learning more and more how to just accept it and relish in Him.  Not in a religious way, but truly in an intense relationship way.  He's only asking me to love Him back and to love Him is obeying His words, living for Him completely.  Just thinking about this and writing this gives me warm feelings inside.  (I'm blushing.) I'm completely in love!! I'm doing whatever I can do to hold on to Him.  He's already holding on to me.  This is great!  Anyway, I just wanted to share what was on my mind.