Trusting God's Plan

By Brittany Yevoli '17

Yep, that's me, the Visi girl who did not go to college. While still planning to go to school, my life has taken a very different turn than what had always been the plan. Today, I am extremely lucky and fortunate to be able to dance in a professional ballet company in Los Angeles. The decision to postpone college took a great deal of time and deep inward reflection. I was stressed about my long term success if I did not attend college right away. But one of our great Visitation teachers taught me to "make the decision out of love, not fear." (Mr. O'Connell, Religion Department) To make this decision, I needed to open my heart up and let God guide me.

In high school, I constantly worried over the simplest little things: agonizing over the size of the margins on my paper, stressing about due dates, etc. God does not care what grade I got on my paper and he does not care how many pirouettes I perform. This is not to say that these things do not matter. We need to put our full effort into our work, but we cannot allow worldly stresses to consume our mental state. We can prepare and work hard, but life itself is fragile, and who knows what will happen tomorrow? God has a plan and we need to trust in his guidance. God is the only one that we truly need to please. Not out of fear, but out of love. We can live day by day at peace knowing that God is there for us.

Jesus resides in every one of us. If we look to see Jesus in all, we can be kinder and more sensitive, patient, and loving in our interactions with one another. Despite all the difficulties big and small, if we keep Jesus at the center of our focus and see the big picture, we will realize that all of our earthly stresses are nothing to worry about.

In today's world, we are constantly looking down at our phones, always trying to look for something to do and see. If we take the time to just look around and be curious about the beautiful world around us, it will settle our souls. We must be present to one another. This way, we can then better remember God's presence in our lives.

This Advent season, I challenge us to offer up our earthly successes for God out of love for Him. For example, every time I perform, I try to thank God for allowing me to live my dream as a ballerina and dance for His glory. We must watch how we interact with one another, as if we are interacting with God himself. This season, anytime we are stressed about something, take a deep breath and pause; bring your worries to God. Talk to him like a friend. And rather than focusing on the things that stress us, take the time to reflect on the gifts God has given us and thank God for all of our blessings.