Moving On

 Let me tell you about one of the most important people in my life: Erin Randalow. When I first met Erin, I was so intimidated because she seemed (and was) such a godly woman and exactly what I wanted to be. I had been praying throughout the summer before attending Georgia Tech that God would have someone wise, and willing to teach, pursue me and help me in my walk with God. Little did I know that Erin had already been praying for me as well. God does funny things like that. When I started getting involved with the Navigators, Erin made me feel so special. She sought me out and wanted to know more about me. She asked me questions about my life, family and who I was. I immediately felt so comfortable with her because she was vulnerable first. She opened her heart and her life to me and never once made me feel like an outsider. I felt like the "cool" freshman because this beautiful woman of God  saw something in me and wanted to be friends with me. Without Erin, I don't know what my time here at Ga Tech would be like.

In September Erin asked me if I wanted to start meeting intentionally to read the Bible and to talk about life, essentially to be discipled by her. I WAS SO EXCITED!! I remember it all to clearly; we were sitting outside of Tin Drum having dinner and I felt as if she was asking me on a date or something. It was so funny but it was essentially the same. She wanted to walk along side of me. I was excited because Erin was exactly what I pictured growing into. In the short months that I had known her, I had already seen the way God was working in her life and all these characteristics of her faith and walk, that I wanted to mimic.

Erin and I began to meet on a weekly basis and she was the tool that God used to change my life forever. When I was a freshman, I had no idea how to study the bible on my own, have a quiet time, how to pray, how to share the gospel, or the importance of memorizing scripture. The best part was she wanted to know what I wanted to learn. She heard my needs and desires and helped me accomplish my goals. Erin has always been my support and greatest encourager. She has been in my corner from day 1 and I never doubted that. She has seen me through some of the hardest times in my life and some of the greatest. She has laughed with me when I did foolish things and cried with me when I was upset. Most of all, she has always listened to me. She has always given me the room and the grace to make mistakes. Erin has challenged me in ways that I never would have done on my own. I have always joked with her that all her wisdom was stored in her hair which is why her hair is so long but even when she cut it, it didn't matter; her wisdom has come from the Lord and no matter how long her hair was, God's wisdom is never ending.

 There are many things that Erin has taught me but I'm only going to talk about a few in this post.

1. Modesty I will never forget the 1-1 we had on this topic. It was probably one of the most emotional and heart wrenching meetings we have had. She shared with me the importance of it and the reasons behind it. Harkey (her boyfriend) had written to me a couple of the reasons and encouragement of how important it was. He shared with me some personal things with me that have helped me make decisions every time I go shopping. If I wouldn't want to wear it around my Dad or around Josh, then I wouldn't buy it. Erin instilled in me on that day a desire to protect my brothers in Christ. I wanted to help them in their walk with the Lord and not to be a hindrance to them. I wanted to protect them for their wives' sake just as I hope some woman out there is protecting my husband, whoever he may be.

2.  Prayer Erin loves to pray and because of this I have heard so much about the power of prayer. Erin has taught me how to pray and when to pray (which is always). I once told Erin that I didn't like to pray in front of people because I didn't "pray well enough" and that I wasn't "good enough." This was the first out of two times that Erin has ever raised her voice at me. She told me that those thoughts I was having were of Satan's doing. That God didn't want fancy words or eloquent praise but that He wanted me. He wanted me to talk to him, to tell him about my day and how I was feeling. So from then on, she would force me to pray out loud, in front of people until now I can say that I love to pray and no longer feel embarrassed as I once did.

3. Scripture Memory If there is one thing that doesn't come naturally, it is scripture memory. From that first semester, Erin started quizzing me and holding me accountable in this area. She challenged me and urged me on. It still doesn't come natural to me but I have seen the fruits of it in ways that I would never have thought.

4. Biblical Leadership From these 3 years with Erin, I have been watching everything she did. I watched how she dealt with conflict, how she encouraged people and most importantly how she lead people. Erin modeled discipleship and taught me how to lead other girls. She gave me the opportunity to co-lead with her in bible study and taught me how to lead a small group. When I struggled with discipleship, she encouraged me and gave me wisdom to keep going. She showed me the passion she had for freshmen girls and to grow the women's ministry of Navigators. Because of this, I have been excited about similar things. I will be leading the women's ministry next year but the thing that I am most excited about is to be an example of biblical submission. I want to be an example of what it looks like for a woman in leadership to submit to Rob, who is President of Navs. I want to show the women that I am leading, that as women, we are called to submission. This doesn't mean that we don't lead, but we lead differently and in the way God has called us. I wouldn't be able to do this, if Erin had not been modeling this for me for many years.

Erin has been my role model in so many ways. She has allowed me to ask her nosy questions about her relationship with Josh, family, and friends. She never tried to keep secrets from me but shared openly and admitted her mistakes. To me, Erin Randalow is a super hero. God has worked powerfully in her and my life would not be where it is today, if she had not followed in faith and poured into me. I'm sure that I was frustrating at times but she never gave up on me.

Last night, Erin gave her senior talk at Nav Nite. We prayed for her to send her out into the world. As she continues into marriage with Josh and a chemical engineer with BASF, I know that she will be following the Lord. I will miss her like nothing else. If I am honest with myself, I am scared to know what I will do with out her because she has been so important to me. But God is faithful and has taught me so much that I know that I will be able to stand because He is my strength (Isaiah 41:10) and I do not need to fear. It amazes me that there will be freshmen next year who don't know who she is but I hope that the legacy that she has left behind in me will continue to touch other people. If she has taught me nothing else, it is to be aware of who is watching and to be a light for Christ in everything I do. I know that Erin will never disappear from the Georgia Tech Navigators because of the lives she has touched her 4 years here. She not only taught, but taught others to teach. Erin has left behind a legacy of love, grace, discipleship and a passion for God.

A phrase that I have heard so many times is to have "An Attitude of Gratitude" and that is exactly how I feel. I am so grateful to have been allowed the honor of walking along side this wonderful woman. I am sad that she is leaving but I would never want to detract her from what God has planned. The Lord will be doing great things through this woman and I'm excited to hear about them.

Basically, if you don't know Erin then I am very sad for you and you should remedy that now!