Define normal.

Normal. According to the dictionary, the word normal is defined as: conforming to the standard or common type; usual; regular; natural. To me, normal means doing what society tells you.

Ever watch the movie 101 Dalmatians when you were younger? Remember that one dalmatian that didn't get spots right away? I'm pretty sure its name was Oddball. Yeah, well that was always me. I always had to do something different than everyone else. My family is your typical American family. Mom, dad, sister, dog, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. My sister is getting married in October to a great guy whom I love to death who has a "big boy" haircut, as my dad would say, and has a job to support a family. Then there's me. I dig guys that have long hair, skinny jeans, tattoos, and most importantly, love Jesus. If they are completely broke and say, "I'm trusting God," that's my type of guy.  My family is very normal. Normal clothes, normal hair, normal everything. Me on the other hand? I like skinny jeans, crazy colored clothing, tattoos, piercings, dying my hair every color there is, crazy patterns, and adventuring on rooftops. For my family, that's not normal. I was blessed to be raised by great parents who taught me right from wrong, but I was never blessed by a solid Christian household. My family thankfully supports me in all that I do (most of the time), but when it comes to church stuff, we were what I would like to call "Chreasters." We would only attend church on Christmas and Easter. When I got saved, I got my parents to go to church with me and I found my home church Crossroads. When I felt a calling for ministry and decided to hop on the road for a year, that wasn't normal...which is where some conflict came into play. It was normal to go to graduate high school. It was also normal to go straight to college. Not for me. I've always hated doing the "normal" thing. So, I chose to travel the country for 9 months presenting the Gospel with 12 other AWESOME brothers and sisters in Christ. Let me tell you something...when you finally say, "Here I am LORD, send me." He will bless you for your step of obedience.

Coming off of tour has been a huge life transition. Because I don't come from the background of a Christian home, life on the road was a huge blessing. I gained 12 brothers and sisters in Christ that became my new family. A new family that I could go to for prayer requests, that I could walk the streets with sharing the Gospel, that I could take the homeless out to eat, that I could gain Godly advice from. Coming back home, it has been hard to adjust. Not having anyone to turn to to gain Biblical advice from, not praying before family meals, not doing devotionals and quiet time together, not keeping each other accountable.

Now here is the point I am trying to get at. While writing all of this, I realized this. YOU define your own normal. Make it normal for your family to pray before meals. Make it normal to read the Bible together. Make it normal to take homeless out to eat no matter how unsafe your parents think it is. Make it normal to follow God's will. Next year, I will be doing society's "normal" and going to college. And trust me. It has been a struggle for me to accept that I am doing society's "normal." I am not going to give in to what everyone tells me, but I am obeying what the Bible says and the Bible says to honor your parents. My parents have supported me in everything...tour was a struggle for them, but they made a compromise with me that if I took a year off, I had to go to college the following year...college was my parents dream for me. So here I am, left saying, LORD, send me. Still confused on where He is sending me, but I am trusting. Trusting that God will do great things. All you gotta do is let God be your new normal.

The sky is the limit.

Well, tour officially ended. But you would never know that, because 2 days later, I decided to take an 11 day road trip to end up in Houston, TX. Jack, Chelsea, and I left Pittsburgh on the 25th. We stopped in Savannah, GA, Huntsville, AL, New Orleans/Lutcher, LA, Houston, TX, College Station, TX, and Marble Falls, TX. We got the opportunity to check out some awesome churches and meet some awesome people. We were in church in Savannah, GA and I just kind of took a second to look back and reflect on my life. I was in Savannah, GA. I got the opportunity to travel the entire country as well as the island of Barbados. How many people get that opportunity? At that moment, I was so humbled. God has blessed me so much and all I do is fail Him constantly. Sometimes you get into this phase where you are just going through the motions. I'm sick of it. He has blessed us immensely and all we do is continue to live for ourselves. It's time for change.

Another humbling moment was when we were in Lutcher. First off, I remember staying there the first time on tour and how great the people were. We stayed with a host family that blew my mind. Their house was incredible and they were all around phenomenal. Our host dad talked to us in the morning and just encouraged us. He was so sweet and kind and shared stories of how God was working in His life. He decided he wanted to bless us by giving us money to go to lunch. When we got to lunch, we met a lady who was deaf. From friends who have deaf parents and friends that love sign language, I knew enough to be able to do small talk with her. We asked if she was hungry. She said she was but she didn't have time. We then asked if she wanted something to go. We ordered her food and she said she would be right back. A guy at the table behind us asked if she was coming back. We said yes, she just had to go outside. About ten minutes passed and she came back in and got her food and thanked us. The waitress came up to us and said, "I just wanted to let you know all of your tickets including hers were taken care of by the gentleman behind you." when we looked behind us, he was gone. He saw us trying to minister and bless someone, so instead, he blessed us. We were all taken back for a second at what just happened. God will bless you for your actions. The point of this story is this. When I thought tour ended, I kinda was not ready to stop being used. When this happened, I realized just because I'm not on tour with a ministry and will not get the opportunity to minister daily doesn't mean I can't be used in "the real world." God will continue to give opportunities, even ones I do not deserve. Like tomorrow for example. Tomorrow, God decided to work out perfect timing. Chelsea is good friends with a member of Tenth Avenue North's wife. We are going to be in Nashville at the exact time that Tenth Avenue North will be filming their new music video for their song Losing. They are trying to get us in the video. What the heck?! How cool is that? Like I said, He will bless you...when you don't deserve any of it. Be humble to be His servant. Appreciate everything and never take any of it for granted. Make the most of every opportunity.

The devil will tempt you but fight the good fight. And when you fight the good fight, you will be blessed for it. Our reward in Heaven is so much greater than anything on this planet. When you say here I am Lord, send me. He will send you to places you could never imagine. Let your attitude be focused on Christ and Christ alone. Let Him use your hands and feet and He will bless you for it. With Christ, the sky is the limit.