College.

"The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet" - Aristotle

         I was one of the many crazed freshman to arrive on the campus of Bob Jones University on August 28th. The atmosphere was what I had always hoped it would be. Parents hovered over their kids and kids looked to their parents for their final looks of approval.I, however, wasn't one of these kids. I took one look around and my head screamed,” FREEDOM!". I didn't realize how much home-schooled Sierra was going to change to become college freshman Sierra. While you may gain freedom as you enter into this new world of college you're also met with a wall of responsibilities.

      "What am I doing here?" I thought as I attempted to study for my upcoming English test. College was weird. They don't really teach you they just tell you what you should do, not how to do it. The one word that I have become best friends with since that Friday is, confused.  Keeping track of rules, classes, and my social life was no easy task. I felt I needed to start a reminder just so I would do laundry! I mean come on, it's laundry, what was happening to me. I have heard it said that when we feel we can't do it anymore is when we realize we never could. Sierra Sterling can't do it.

        I can't do it alone. I need help that can only be found from one place, from God. Now don't freak out and throw you laptop across the room because here is another sob story of a girl who trusted in God and magically her life became awesome! This story isn't like that. Just because I believe that I can do anything with the strength of God, doesn't always mean I succeed. Yes, you read that right. My life is still that disaster and confusion that you believe it would be. It doesn’t, however, mean that I feel like a disaster anymore. I was doing it. I was studying, learning, and ultimately trying. I was putting all my effort into this school work and social world that surrounded me. The result, however they may be, I could live with. The word happiness was once again my best friend and confusion was forgotten.

     Now let me end on a good note or perhaps just a slightly funny one. I get to do my laundry for free. So if that doesn't make you feel blessed then I don't know what will! Thanks for giving me some of your time and hopefully this was enjoyable and maybe encouraging to you! If you have any prayer requests or questions for me I can be contacted at basicblonde101@gmail.com! Thank you all for staying faithful to my blog posts even in times when I am not!

Positively Happy

   Hello again! May I just start with saying, sorry, I do believe I am the worst blogger in history! I never know when I will find the time to write and trust me I wish it was more often! None the less, here I am using the time I did find to finally post! So I do hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it!

   Recently I have been thinking and talking about the same topic. Being positive. Now I know you could expect to see "think positive" on a cat poster or perhaps a banner in your math class. How often do we actually stop and think about what it is to think positive? One definition I found for positive was, "something that is good or useful". So let's just say for a moment when you are told to think positive you are being told to think good and perhaps usefully. So when you don't find that adorable polka dotted shirt in your size or your favorite basketball teams looses the big game, you think of good. 

    Now I know it really isn't that simple. Things happen and it's not our first instinct to put a smile on when our dreams or hopes get crushed. But it is an important tool I've come to realize can help in many situations. Let's take this broad topic of positivity into a specific area, relationships. Relationships are not always perfect, no matter how much we might not like it, that's the truth. So what do you do when the going gets tough? Some may simply quit, some may want a break, and others might not even know what to do! May I just say really quick that I'm not specifically speaking of a couple here. We all have many different relationships in our lives and this applies to all of them.  So when your Mom is being extremely unreasonable or your boyfriend is working a lot and you can't see him as much, what are you gonna do? THINK POSITIVE! 

   Put that smile that everyone loves so much on your face and fill your mind with those good and useful thoughts! You can't wreck a relationship when you focus on the other persons positive attributes or characteristics. In fact, you can only grow! So yes, the going is gonna get rough and tough. But when we focus on the positives, those good and useful thoughts, we might just find ourselves in closer and stronger relationships in the end. That's what I hope happens to every single person reading this, that you might gain a positive spirit and perhaps even leave with a smile on your face!  

   " I will call upon Your name, and keep my eyes above the waves when oceans rise, my soul will rest in your embrace for I am Yours and You are mine." - Oceans by Hillsong United.


  Ever felt so sad that you believed you would never be happy again? That was me. I didn't just wake up one day and find myself this way. It slowly grew without me noticing. I was happy wasn't I? I kept convincing myself that if I could keep smiling then I could manage. But you can't hide from the truth for very long. When I finally couldn't hide my sadness anymore, it became the only thing I could focus on. I felt myself going down into a dark pit and I didn't feel strong enough to climb out... and I didn't want to.
  The storms of life were happening all around me and I was drowning in an ocean of sadness. " I can get my life together", I thought, " I don't need anyone to help me or give me advice." People told me what I already knew... Go to God. But I didn't want to. I wanted Sierra to be in charge of her own life and her own destiny. My sadness grew and so did the stubbornness in my heart.
  I stopped caring and I stopped making wise decisions. It was ME time. Maybe if I did everything Sierra wanted to do then I would be happy again. People who I thought cared about me left me when I  had needed them. I was angry and hurt. Why should I care anymore? To love is to be vulnerable. I didn't want to be hurt anymore. So I stopped caring. My life was falling apart. I knew I should get it together, but I was holding myself back.
  It was a Sunday night and I hit the bottom. I couldn't live like this anymore. Living for me had gotten me into trouble and that's when I realized I had a problem. I want to help build people up and bring them closer to Christ, but I had been pulling people down with me. That wasn't going to be me anymore. I let go of the sadness. The pain other people had caused me became bearable. The anger I had toward others had vanished. I didn't need to rely on others. God was always there for me and that's all I need.
  So after a good cry while listening to "Oceans" I felt once again happy. I was there when people needed me and God is always there when I need Him. So even though I shed a couple tears while typing this I hope you are left with a smile. There is hope.  I felt hopeless and alone, but I made it through and so can you.


  "Your grace abounds in deepest waters, Your sovereign hand will be my guide. Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me, You've never failed and You won't start now. "' - Oceans by Hillsong United