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So I’m engaged! On New Year’s Eve, I sang her a song, pulled out a ring, got down on one knee and asked the wonderful and beautiful Rebecca Chambers to marry me. And she said yes! I can’t believe how blessed I am.

Leading up to the proposal, I got pretty nervous. I realized how vulnerable I would be while I was down on one knee after confessing my love and pulling out a shiny token of my commitment to her. I was putting it all on the line!

I was reflecting on my commitment to Rebecca earlier this week and was struck by several things in a row. One, I was going to marry Rebecca. That’s a huge deal! Two, I took a big step in telling her how I felt about her and asking if she wanted to marry me. Finally, I thought about Jesus, and how He’s committed to me.

It was a staggering thought! Jesus has already not only confessed His love for me, but also done so much out of His affection for me. He’s put Himself in the ultimate position of vulnerability so that I can know Him and have a relationship with Him. He’s paid for me – not with money, but with His own life.

I’m humbled by that and so thankful that He loves me. It’s weird to think of myself as part of His bride (the end of Ephesians 5 describes the church as Christ’s bride), but as I look forward to Rebecca and me getting married I understand a little more of the anticipation the metaphor conveys.

I’m so looking forward to marrying Rebecca. As we get closer to the wedding, I’m also looking forward to understanding more what it means that Jesus loves me as a husband loves his bride. I hope this encourages you to reflect on His love for you too!

-Justin

My last winter break of college is almost over… I can hardly believe it! I’m entering my last semester at Cal, and I’ve been challenged to redirect my thinking away from “how to spend my time well” toward “how to invest my time well.” There are several lenses that I’ve been personally challenged to think through regarding investing my time and ways that I would love to challenge you too!

1. College is a gift of four years. The Lord has blessed us with the privilege of studying at Cal for four years, give or take a few semesters. Though I often think that I earned my way to Berkeley and that I deserve to study here, it’s actually all a gracious gift that the Lord has entrusted us with. As with other gifts, it is a rich opportunity that we have to use God’s gift in a way that is honoring to Him.

2. Stewardship. Because God has blessed us with the opportunity to be at Cal, I believe that we are to steward our time well. I believe that stewarding my personal time at Cal includes stewarding my resources, my mind, my classes, my relationships, and my time alone. I often find myself wasting time, and before I know it, I’ve spent an hour looking at my friend’s friend’s sister’s Facebook pictures (whom I’ve never met). It seems ridiculous when I write about it, but I know you’ve probably done it before too! Anyways, long story short, God has entrusted us with time at Cal, and we are to steward each part of it for His glory and purposes!

3. Be ready for Christ’s return. My scope has been limited to “these four years at Cal”, but a pastor recently caused me to alter my scope. After all, my purpose is not just to steward my time at Cal, but to steward my life. Why? Because we are to always be living in light of Christ’s return. We are to live with urgency and expectation of His return.

When the pastor who preached the sermon about living in light of Christ’s return, he ended by asking the question: If Christ returned today, would you be ready or would you be rushing to do things that He had called you to do? So my challenge for you (and for myself) is to pray and consider how you can best be investing your time in light of eternity and Christ’s return. First, think about how you can invest your final week at home. Then, think about your next semester at Cal. Lastly, think about your life. My hope is that you don’t see this as a duty, but a beautiful privilege of stewarding God’s gifts that He is allowing us to take part in!

Have a restful final week of break. I can’t wait to see you soon!

-Melissa