family

This year, instead of sending a Christmas letter, I decided to jump on the early bird train and send a “Thanksgiving Letter,” because despite all the curveballs from 2020, there is a lot to be thankful for! This is the letter I sent out to several people but also wanted to have it digitally right here to share with those I was unable to send letters to this year. I want to tell you about 20 things I’m thankful for this year, and I pray this will encourage you to end your year with gratitude too!

1. New Washer: Our washer broke in January. One of our friends came to look at it, and was going to order the right pieces for us and fix it. Instead, his family bought us a brand new washer AND installed it for us! This may seem small, but I am thankful for this family and the way they loved me and my roommates!

2. Spin Weekend: We were able to have our annual spring student event, SPIN, in March a few weeks before the pandemic hit Texas. That was one of our last times seeing our students, and I am so grateful for that weekend together!

3. Roommates and Movie Marathons: Once the pandemic hit, my roommates (Shelby and Margie) and I watched over 40 movies! I am grateful for their friendship, willingness to eat popcorn every night, and for their grace during quarantine.

4. Loving Neighbors: One blessing the pandemic provided was the opportunity for me, my roommates, and a few of our other friends to meet our neighbors, pray with them, and have spiritual conversations with them. Even in the midst of a pandemic, we were invited in for hours to talk with people who were really lonely, several who were sick, and many who were struggling during this season. We had frequent conversations with our closest neighbors, but knocked on almost every door in our apartment complex over the span of a few months. I am grateful for these friends to love neighbors with, the conversations we got to have, & the men and women who trusted Jesus!

5. Sabbath Rhythms: This quarantine season honestly gave me a great opportunity to truly practice sabbath. I know I haven’t “nailed it” yet, but I am thankful for the new mercies each week to practice sabbath rest and trust the Lord deeper.

6. Parents 30 Year Anniversary: On June 9, my parents celebrate 30 years of marriage! Although I didn’t get to be there in person to celebrate with them, I am incredibly grateful for the ways their marriage is an example of faithfulness, devotion, service, and humility. They love God, each other, and others with the deepest love, and I am proud to call them my parents! Congrats mom and dad!

7. TVC Residency Program: I began the Residency Program at The Village Church in the Fall of 2019 and completed it this spring! This program grew me in uncountable ways, including challenging me in how many books I could physically read in a year! We had in depth conversations about culture, postmodernism, theology, and the church. I am thankful for the challenge and the ways I was pushed to be a deeper disciple of Jesus.

8. Backpacking Trip: With all of our student summer events canceled, this gave me the opportunity to plan a backpacking trip with a few friends! None of us had backpacked before, which made for an interesting trip! You can read about this trip (and the many other hiking adventures I’ve had recently) on my blog under the “Adventures” tab. But, I am thankful for these adventure friends and the opportunity to be in the middle of nature with them!

9. Accepted Job at Storyline Fellowship: In August, I began a new job as the student minister at Storyline Fellowship in Arvada, Colorado. It was not an easy thing to apply for this job, simply because I loved my community, my friends, and my coworkers so much at The Village Church. This decision took weeks of fasting, prayer, and guidance from others. I am thankful for the ways the Lord showed me more of Himself during these stressful few weeks and the clarity He provided through it all. Although I deeply miss the students, my coworkers, my roommates, the families, and my close community in Texas, I know this is exactly where God wants me, & for that I am grateful. Also, I love my new job a whole lot!

10. Mom Healed from Cancer! My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer on the first week the pandemic hit. So yeah, it was a rough week. On the day I accepted the position at Storyline, my mom also went in for her last treatment and is doing great! I am thankful for the ways the Lord guided her, provided friends around her to love and support her when Austin and I could not be near, and brought her healing through incredible doctors. And I’m grateful that cancer has been defeated in her life, & prayerful it will not return!!

11. My Texas Family: There are several families that impacted me during my time in Texas & invited me in. But I have some favorite little people who I love deeply & miss daily (pictured below). I am grateful for my 5 years in Texas, all God taught me, & the people I call my family.

12. Moved in a Pandemic: My friends who were planning on driving the moving truck with me ended up getting Covid two days before we left. That led to a day of panic about how I was going to move to Colorado, followed with sadness that I wouldn’t get to see them before I left. Yet, the Lord provided two other friends who were willing to drive for 13 hours straight with a moving van across three states! I am thankful for these friends and their willingness to go on a spontaneous moving trip with me!

13. Hiked My 14th 14er: I was able to hike four 14ers (mountains over 14,000 ft) this summer, reaching number 14 on my list! My goal remains to hike all 58, & now that I’m back in Colorado, I hope this goal will come sooner than later! I’m thankful for the friends who hiked 14ers with me this summer, the majesty of God I get to see from that altitude, & for the physical ability to hike. I never want to take that for granted, so I’m thankful for a healthy body this year!

14. New Roommates and New Traditions: Upon moving to Colorado, that meant I needed new roommates and a place to live. Praise the Lord for two other single girls, who both moved from Texas and The Village, and who were looking for roommates! Caitie and Lindsay have quickly become great friends and I am so thankful for the community they have provided during this transition and continued pandemic. We also have started a tradition of getting up early on Saturday mornings (mostly to beat the crowd and be more efficient… can you tell we are all enneagram 1’s?!) and go on a nice long hike! So if you’re in town on a Saturday & want to get up early, you know where to find us!

15. Early Snow: We got hit with early snow in September and it made my heart happy! Again, this may seem like a little thing to mention, but it’s something I am grateful for! The snow seems to bring with it this sense of peace and the remove of urgency to be everywhere and do everything. Plus, it’s been really fun teaching my Texas roommates about all things Colorado, preparing for winter, and how to shovel a driveway!

16. Community: In Texas, I cherished living within walking distance of a lot of people I knew, spent time with, and loved. And yet, I remembered moving to Texas a little over five years ago and having no community at first. God answered that prayer over time as I lived there! Moving back to Colorado has led me to pray for the same thing! I am thankful for the community God provided in Texas, especially during a pandemic, & for the community he has provided here in families who moved from Texas at the same time!

17. Family Visited: My brother (Austin) and sister-in-law (Jenna) came to visit for two whole weeks in October! That was a really sweet and unexpected gift since Hawaii has been in full lock down for most of the year. I’m grateful they were able to come and spend a few weeks here with us, & thankful for the ways they encourage me, along with all the fun we have together.

18. Student Came to Faith: During the second month of my job, I got to see the Lord save one of our students and totally transform her life! I’m grateful to be on the front row of seeing all God is doing in the lives of students in Arvada!

19. No Instagram: I took a year off from Instagram (except the one week in August to announce I was moving) and it has been wonderful! I am thankful for the ways this has led me to be more present with those around me & less concerned about getting the perfect picture and caption everywhere I go.

20. YOU! Last but not least, I am grateful for you! Thank you for reading this post and many other posts from this year! I pray that these have been an encouragement to you and a little glimpse into my life while I take a break from Instagram! And I hope this list encourages you to make your own list of things to be grateful for from this crazy year!

Stay around for more posts in the future and follow my blog using the links below so you won’t miss a post! Until then, Happy Thanksgiving!

I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
Psalm 9:1 (ESV)

“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”
-Winnie the Pooh

Moving is always hard because it is always filled with mixed emotions.

As I have considered my transition from Texas back to Colorado, I’ve thought, “Why is this move so hard?” And then I’ve realized that it’s because this was an unexpected transition. Every other move I have made has come at the end of something significant with a specific and known end date. For example, when I graduated High School and moved to Oklahoma for college. There was a specific date that high school would end and college would begin. The same thing happened at the end of college. Those goodbyes were hard, but we were expecting them to be hard for months. We had time to prepare for goodbyes, craft all the right words, and do all of the best things together before the transition hit.

This time it was different. This time the transition was not predicted or expected. It was not something that was set to hit after being in one place for five years. That means that all of those emotions hit in new ways. I have had days where I’m flooded with emotions and have been so sad to not be around “my people” anymore. I had to say goodbye to people that I love in big groups and in ways where I simply didn’t have the words to express everything they mean to me.

Leaving a place you love is hard. …But to be honest, I never really “loved” Texas like true Texans do. What is truly hard about leaving is the people. I love the people I have grown to know over the past five years. And they know me. To be known and loved is an incredible feeling.

During my last few weeks and days leading up to the big move, many people expressed how excited I must be to get to be close to my family again. That is very true. I am so excited to be close to my parents again after nine years away (and maybe one day my brother and sister-in-law will join us too…). But my family is also in Texas. I have lived with several families, spent uncountable meals with others, been to all the big events (graduations, recitals, games) with others, and with some, it’s simply been living normal life with them and doing everyday things. And that is family. Those people are my family. They are my brothers and sisters, my nieces and nephews…my family. They invited me into everyday things and let me be part of their immediate family while I was away from my immediate family.

And to those individuals, families, parents, and children… I am forever grateful. They are the family I will miss living back in Colorado. They are the family I will miss going to the grocery store with, stopping by their homes on walks, and eating meals around their tables.

If you have experienced a move recently, or maybe you have had a close friend move away recently, I encourage you to continue in steadfast prayer for one another. Remember that God has not changed and He is still the same God no matter what location you live in or who lives close to you. He is a God we can trust in the transitions, laments, and everything in between. He provides all that we need, even new friends and family. …But he has also given us technology and Facetime, so use that as a good grace during and after transitions 😉

To my Texas Family, I love you. I miss you. And I am grateful for you.

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 1:3-6 (ESV)

Morgan Marshall

Writing about God, Life, and Adventures.

Transitions.