So I've been thinking a lot lately about why things happen to people. Since coming here I can't count how many times I've been told that there are no such things as coincidences. When I first heard that it made me stop and think about my purpose and the plan that my Heavenly Father has laid out for me already. All of a sudden I found myself constantly thinking about everything that had happened to me in my life and in that day, that week, that month, and that year. Soon, I engraved that nothing that has happened to me has been a coincidence.
I believe that I went to BYU in Provo for the summer term for a reason, and while I may not know why exactly just yet, I know for a fact that it wasn't a coincidence. After being admitted I was determined to live in Heritage Halls where all my Boston stake friends would be. However, since I was a visiting student I had last pick of housing so when I went to go sign up for a room, Heritage was all full. So as a result I found myself looking at rooms in Helaman Halls., I went through 5 rooms before finally deciding on 2212 in Hinkley Hall. I'm not exactly proud of how I chose which room I chose. I basically chose a room and stalked the girl I was sharing a room with on Facebook. I went through 5 different rooms before choosing mine because every girl looked sort of strange to me on Facebook. And then I came across Tracy. At this point I was tired of not finding a room so I was ready to just pick a room and stick with it. But nonetheless I looked Tracy up on Facebook and she seemed to be the most normal one yet. I am so incredibly grateful I was stuck up and judged people by what I saw on their Facebooks. While that might seem self-centered and weird, I would not have had the experience that I had at Provo without Tracy. Because I was picky I got to meet some of the most amazing people I have ever met in my life. Tracy became one of my best friends. We related on so many levels and could talk to each other about a lot of things--something that would normally be weird for people who had only known each other for only 3 months. I had been praying to make good friends that would make transferring to Provo an easier experience if I do end up transferring in the future. Tracy made me want to be outgoing; at night when we were bored and wanted to do something, we wouldn't just sit around and watch netflix! We would text friends and ask them if they wanted to do something. I got to do some pretty cool things and go on fun adventures with a lot of people that way. In a lot of ways, I really came out of my shell this summer; I got comfortable with a really great group of friends. None of that was by coincidence. It wasn't coincidence that I'm a picky person who is secretly a little self-centered. And it most definitely was not a coincidence that Tracy and I roomed together this summer.
Tracy & I right before I left
Tracy, Jessie, me, and Bree
My Provo friends and I throwing a surprise birthday party :)
As hard as it is for me to admit, it was not a coincidence that I only went to BYU as a visiting student. It also is no coincidence that I'm here at BYUH. I know that great things are in store for me here. One of the many blessings that I've come across has been the fact that my testimony has grown enormously here. I always thought I had a pretty good gospel perspective on life, but when I got here I actually started to look at things differently. It was like I had been hit in the head with a spiritual lightning bolt! I don't know exactly when it started or how it started but I have found myself seeing the deeper meaning to a lot of things. I catch myself crossing a road and frequently just pondering to myself about the plan that Heavenly Father has laid out for me and how things I have done throughout my life have led me to following it. I constantly think about the whole idea of coincidences and how they don't exist in God's work. I've come to believe that things always happen for a reason. Obviously if me and some girl wore the exact same outfit one day, that probably wouldn't be a huge life/path-altering occurrence. But something like a life-long friend or a college experience has a huge life-time effect. My path has been changed, or at least the direction that I thought it was headed in changed. Something so simple as switching rooms 5 times has changed my life forever. I'm so grateful to know that there is a purpose to all of this and that what has happened to me thus far has happened to me for a reason. It's nice to be able to recognize how Heavenly Father has been continuously guiding and directing me, especially because I never really took the time to recognize it before hand. I am so incredibly blessed to be able to say that I have a strong testimony that God is real and that His plan for us is so real. I love having the knowledge that He lives! He lives and He loves us enough to help us along the road. We don't even recognize His hand in our lives half the time and He still is patient and continues to help us. How amazing is it to know that there is someone always keeping an eye out for us? I love being able to say that I know everything that I have said here to be true because I have taken the time to recognize it in my own life.
♡,
Nina
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