I cannot believe that Miss Georgia week is already so close. My reign as Miss Cobb has gone by so quickly. As I wrap up my last semester as a junior at Ole Miss, I cannot help but reflect on all the memories and experiences I have had since August. It has been a year full of a lot of difficult challenges and obstacles to overcome, but the Lord has used those trials to show me He is faithful and has an amazing plan for me! I have one more week of school--then it is finals and home for some intense Miss GA prep.
This semester has been very busy at school. I am a member of the Columns Society at Ole Miss which basically is a group of 24 upperclassmen who are ambassadors to the Chancellor. We who serve as the student "face" for Ole Miss. This semester I have had the opportunity to serve at numerous outreach events including More than A Meal, the UM Gospel Choir Concert, and receptions at the Chancellor's House. We will also help at the Memorial Service this week honoring students and faculty who have passed away this past year as well as assist with Commencement the following week. I have enjoyed serving the university and getting to spend time with many leaders on campus.
This semester I was also inducted into Mortar Board, ODK Honors Society, and Phi Kappa Phi Honors Society. I have also begun working on my Honors College Senior Thesis. I will be researching and defending the importance of creativity in schools' curriculum. I am excited to begin my research this summer by interviewing teachers at schools in Georgia. In addition, this week I received the Lamar Scholarship from the School of Education which will help cover costs for the summer class I have to take. I was nervous about finding funds for the class, but the Lord definitely provided! Overall, it has been a successful year academically, but the way I have progressed in my spiritual life is what I am most grateful for.
As I have shared before, I have been doing my best at school to prepare specifically for Miss GA by meeting with my choreographer in Jackson, taking dance lesson multiple times a week, getting up for early morning workouts, and keeping up with the news via CNN on twitter. A few weeks ago I mailed in my talent music, Resume, Platform Essay, Contract, and Scholarship Applications. Although all of these things help me minimize my "Miss GA Prep checklist" there is something much more important that has been preparing me for Miss GA--Jesus! And that is what I want to focus on today.
As many of you may know, I competed in the Miss GA Pageant last summer for the first time. It was one of the most exhausting, challenging, exciting, emotional, and rewarding weeks of my life. However, last year I made one very big mistake. I directed all my focus on winning the title of Miss Georgia. I invested all my worth and my hope in the title, and when I didn't do as well as I expected, frankly, I was devastated. This past year it has been absolutely amazing to see how the Lord has been working in my life to show me that HE is the thing I need to seek. He is the one I need to run to, cling to, put my trust and hope in. And he has faithfully shown time and time again when I am trusting in Him, He will lead me to the people, places, and spheres of influence that bring the most glory to his name.
There are a few examples of this I want to share with you. First, I have had the opportunity to be the chaplain for my sorority this semester. This has by far been the most fulfilling leadership role I have ever had. Leading Bible study and ministering to many of the freshman girls are some of the best parts of my week. I find an inexplicable joy watching them grow closer to the Lord and knowing He is using me to help in that process. Knowing that God wants to use someone like me who has so many struggles and imperfections is so humbling!
There are countless examples from this past year of how God has guided me through stressful situations. I won't go into great detail, but I do want to share what I have learned. I attend a campus ministry, Cru, every week and was asked to give my testimony, or story or my relationship with the Lord, one night. Standing up in front of hundreds of other students and sharing with them how God has blessed me with so much, I truly realized the greatness of His love. He loves all who believe in Him so much! The grace He shows me daily encourages me to share this amazing love with every one I meet whether through words or action.
I am looking forward to Miss GA week more than ever! Not just because I am excited to compete for the crown, but because I know the Lord has the ability to use me in so many ways that week to share His love with the other contestants. I know from last year the week is stressful and exhausting, but knowing that I have the strength of the Lord to rely on is all the comfort I need.
All for His glory,
Stephanie
“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Cor. 12: 7-10
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