| The End of the Matter | 2020 Year in Review

"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.

   

Now all has been heard. . .

A good way to summarize 2020.  All the deeds have been done, all has been heard, and every hidden thing has been or will be revealed in its time.  All we can do is let go and let God ... to cliche?  How about this - fear God and keep His commandments.  Whatever you faced this year, there is sure to be more ahead.  Now is the time as we reflect on this last calendar year to take a deep breath and learn to fear the Lord and to keep His commandments.  

I'm still working on that myself, but here is an effort to remember some of the experiences that may turn into lessons learned from 2020:

Accidents Happen...

The year opened up with an adventure.  It involved a patch of ice, a telephone pole, a snowstorm, and a totaled car.  Thankfully, no one was injured!  But I can't say the same thing about our vehicle. 

It was a good camry

But we found a good replacement!

While the World Went Mad . . .

We still found things to celebrate.  Weddings, graduations, and new additions to the family!

Ruth graduates!

This year inconvenienced many, but the Lord guided us through it without much loss.  For that we are thankful!  Although Ruth finished out her career at New Saint Andrews College online, she was able to graduate in person at the beginning of this school year.  So very thankful for this intelligent woman and all that she accomplished throughout her college career!  Having been married to her during her senior year of school, I was a witness to the sleepless nights and mental gymnastics that resulted in her achieving her degree.  Well done, love!

Now we switch places as we enter the last semester of my degree.

We had two additions to the family!  Little Lucy Nyhus was born last winter, and Ezekiel Shaw was born later in the fall!  So excited to watch these two grow and experience the stories that the Lord has set before them.

Lucy Nyhus!

Ezekiel Shaw!

We were blessed to join in the celebration of multiple weddings!  A couple are pictured below:

Blessings on the White household this year!

Blessings on the Friedel household this year!

Plodding Away . . .

The Life Given News and Radio have grown to a combined team of eleven people; some working as writers, others as podcasters, and still others as our social media team.  It has been a project that has had it's slow times, but that is expected when everyone involved is doing it for free and are leading busy lives, but despite that it has continued to progress and grow!  So thankful to be working with such a talented group of people!

Just for kicks . . .

Some random photos from 2020!

Oregon!

The mountains around Lake Wallowa are just breathtaking

Big smile!

Teaching the younger sister how to make coffee.

I pray that you all have a blessed New Year!  Remember that no matter what, our King is enthroned and nothing can change that.

| 2019 in Review - Closing Thoughts |

I realize that my last post was a review of 2018, but it's never too late to resurrect the old blog, right?  This year brought incredible change to my life, and I am very grateful for an opportunity to reflect on this last year.

- May 18th, 2019 - 

A year and a week after we began dating, I made Ruth my wife for life.  She has been the greatest blessing the Lord has ever floated my way.  It has been an incredible eight months full of laughter, adventure, and growth. Her support, care, and sacrifice have challenged me to seek the Lord more than I could have imagined.  You don't realize how selfish you really are until you get married, and God has shown through Ruth the ways in which I was self-serving.  She is one of a kind.

On that date, we were celebrating the beginning of our journey together. But we were also celebrating the people that got us to that point.  Those were composed of the families and friends, who became family, that the Lord placed in our lives.  And for them, we will be forever grateful.

Hello, Mrs. Lopez.

Friends who became family.

- Summer 2019 - 

This summer provided several learning opportunities through the platform of camps, conferences, and weddings.  Logos' Teacher's Conference and the Called Conference provided us with experiences that kept us busy over our break from school.

The Green Team (proudly) did not finish last in the overall Team activities.

Shepherding 24 high school students can age a couple.

Christ Church's Family Camp

- Family & Travels -

Over this last year, Ruth and I traveled quite a bit.  Amongst the adventures, were trips to Montana, Minnesota (2x), Missouri (2x), and Washington.  One of the highlights was a big family trip to Kansas City, MO.  A trip back to the homeland required a 24-hour road trip that, although long, created some very memorable moments for all those involved.

Graham decided to throw up 3 minutes into the trip.  (He was actually quite the trooper for the entirety of the trip)

Speaking of family, Ruth and I discovered that we would be an aunt and uncle on both sides!  We are both so excited for Isaac and Callie!

- Extracurriculars -

Biked to the top of Moscow Mountain.

This year was full of opportunities outside of the hustle and bustle of school. With the arrival of fall, I began teaching at Logos School and started the second year of coaching the JH boys basketball there, while Ruth began work at HumbleBurger. Recently, she wrapped up her senior thesis, entitled Empowered: Female Superheroes and Feminine Strength. While she was busy with researching and writing her thesis, I began a current events blog called The Life Given.  (Since then, that has grown to a current events discussion group and a podcast!)  I am very excited to see where this goes in 2020.

| 2018 Year in Review - Counting My Blessings |

Another year has swept by and all I can do is just sit here and count my blessings.  It truly astounds me what the Father had drawn up for this last year.  Life is truly a story. All of our attempts at creating stories are but poor imitations of the real story that is being written in this very moment.  Every year gone by is another chapter read.  It is another chapter lived and breathed and laughed.   In life, there are actual cliffhangers and actual wounds.  There are actual happy endings and triumphs.  There are actual wounds and sorrows, hugs and victories.  It is very fast and hard-hitting, which is why I am appreciative of holidays like New Years. New Years is a time within the passing of time to look back and reflect.  It is easy in the midst of the rustling and turning of the pages, that you forget the narrative arcs that wrap up that year into the lessons and challenges that have been given to you.

Looking back, I see specific moments.  Not just moments, but the accumulated pool of memories in those moments.  It can be the beginning of that specific stream of memory or the conclusion.  These are the moments that define the chapter that was this year.

January 13, 2018 - Mr and Mrs Shaw 

The New Year opened with the wedding of my sister to her fiance.  They are now Mr and Mrs Eric Shaw.  It was a beautiful ceremony.  The laughter, joy, and love displayed in their wedding were a representation of what their relationship is.  This was a wonderful beginning to what would be a challenging and fruitful year for them.

PC: Courtney Skeen

Laughter, joy, and love. (PC: Elizabeth Allison Dickson.)

Spring Break - Wallowas

Spring Break marked another memory for me.  That week, a group of guys and I went to the Wallowas in Oregon.  We did quite a bit of hiking in the surrounding mountains and also accomplished a polar bear plunge in the local ice-cold lake. This week was just a smaller picture of a much larger gift that the Lord has given me over the years.  The brothers that I have grown with over the last couple of years at school have filled a gap that I have missed over the years.  I cannot underestimate just how important brotherly fellowship is.  My cup is full.

PC: Sam Nyhus.

May 11, 2018 - First Date

The Lord decided that it was time for the next step.  During this period of my life, I was praying that the Lord would draw me closer to Himself and eliminate distractions.  I didn't have any intentions of striking up a relationship - but He thankfully had other plans.  On May 10, I talked to a father for the first time.  The next day, I took this wonderful woman out on a date.  The incredible thing about this part of the story was the fact that I was leaving for three months just three days into our relationship . . . and she was headed to Alaska.  (If that doesn't testify to how amazing she is, then I don't know what does.)  Talk about a difficult first test! Don't worry, it all turned out well in the end.  (Spoiler alert: We're getting married in May.)

May 14, 2018 - Off to Southern Idaho

I head to southern Idaho to spend the summer working construction with my friend and his family.  It was an incredible opportunity that I will never forget.  The Friedel family welcomed me into their home and made it a very adventurous summer as we explored different state parks on our weekends off.

ShoneShone Falls.

Fall Break - Road Trippin'

Sam, Ruth and I go to Boise, Idaho to visit family and spend some quality time in the state capital.  During this time, we consumed good donuts and coffee and explored places like Freak Alley, a corn maze, and the old Idaho State Penitentiary.  

September 29, 2018 - Uncle Status Achieved

Graham Everett Shaw is born.  This part of the chapter was probably the most challenging to live out.  

May . . . Micaiah and Eric announce that they are pregnant with their first child!  Joy.  

September. . .Micaiah and Eric are choppered to Spokane due to complications with the pregnancy. Anxiety.

September 29. Graham is born.  Elation.

September 20 - December 13.  Graham remains in the hospital, spending most of that time in the NICU.  Brave little man battled.  Both Micaiah and Eric are given plenty of scares.  Trust and prayer.

December 14.  Graham Everett Shaw comes home.  Joy.  

The Lord is good.  (PC: Elizabeth Dickson.)

November 20, 2018 - Engaged

Two and a half years ago, we were just classmates. Two and a half years later, we are engaged.  

Growing up, my dad always taught me to treat people as if my future wife was in the room.  How would you want her to see you?  For me, it was more of a principle, not something that actually would happen.  Little did I know that all of those movie nights, study groups, and dances that our class held - that you were actually in the room.  The things that I first noticed about you was that you were really easy to talk, that you had the same corny humor that I did, and that you were incredibly beautiful.  Call me a cheese triangle if you will, but the joy and love that you have for the Lord, life, and the rest of the world continue to impress me each and every passing day. I am constantly amazed that you decided that you saw me in your future.  

I'm looking forward to spending the rest of my life with you.

You're truly a blessing from God.

I love you, Ruth.

And no, the ring was not in the coffee.

Never gonna let you go..

PC: Emily Robinson.  She does incredible work and took these engagement photos!  (Find her site here: https://emilyrobinsonphotography.com/)

I hope you all have a wonderful New Year!  God bless.

| The Strength of a Three-Fold Cord - Final Sophomore Musings |

"And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him - a threefold cord is not quickly broken." - Ecclesiastes 4:12, ESV.

I am constantly surprised by how quickly time flies.  Regardless of the time of year, it slips by faster than I would like it to.  And this past school year was no exception.  So, although this post may seem a bit late (being nearly a month since school ended), it just doesn't seem like it has been that long since school ended.  

This year needed some time to digest.

Side Note: I think summer is an integral part of college.  For some, summer is an escape, or a time to make money, or a time to just recover and relax.  I think summer can be all of the above and more.  Because time is so hard-hitting and fast during the school year, it is very easy to let many of the lessons that you learn outside of the classroom slip through the cracks.  School has a way of "trimming away the fat."  And this is where summer comes into play.  Summer should be the time to reflect and rebuild.  To look at the lessons that you might have forgotten about, or just brushed away during the rush of school, and do your best to analyze and apply them.  

As I was saying. . .

I could point to many things that I learned this past year, but that would require a much longer blog post and I think that would cause the few readers of my blog to become glassy eyed and stare off into the horizon. (I wouldn't blame them.) 

But what would I say is the lesson that I took away from this year?

Friendship.  That is what has been impressed upon me.

Friendships are where you apply your learning.  That is my practicum if you will.  I've realized that what we learn in the classroom is put into practice in our friendships.  

New Saint Andrews College has been a furnace where some of my greatest friendships have been forged.  It has been a phenomenal blessing in many ways, but this year - this last school year - has impressed upon my life many friends that I can count on and trust.  

Since having moved around a-lot with the military, I have discovered that that can accelerate friendships in a way that seems abnormal.  But looking back, I find that it is the shared experience that really drives those friendships.  It is the pressure of moving, having a father deployed, or being in a brand new place that brings you closer to someone else.

At New Saint Andrews, I have found a similar kind of pressure.  The friendships that I have grown in have been forged in the furnace of intensive learning.  It is a kind of learning that pushes and challenges you in a way that is far beyond mental.  You have to have the desire and determination to really understand it, and also the push to put into practice what you have been taught. 

I remember one Finals Week quite vividly.  I walked into Friendship Square to find a fellow student earnestly preparing for an oral final that he had in under half an hour. The look on his face reflected what I must have had on mine.  Stress.  Both of us were visibly concerned about our perspective finals, yet in that moment I had light a bulb go off.  This is exactly what we signed up for.  

To be challenged.  

And it is in these kinds of moments where friendships are tested.  It is in these kinds of moments that the strength of our three-fold cord is challenged.

It is by no means a cake walk.  

This past year, I have truly been able to witness and experience how iron sharpens iron.  And I cannot wait to see what next year has in store as we continue to grow and push one another in our faith, studies, and lives.  

This is the close of another chapter of my schooling, but it is the beginning of many things that I cannot begin to comprehend at the moment.

Further up and further in!