My New Best Friend

If I told you there was one particular, twenty-dollar item that is going to help me survive graduate school, many things probably pop into your mind.

...an APA instruction book that lays out how to write exactly like business professors want you to?
..........nope.

...5 boxes of buttery popcorn for lonely, study-filled nights?
........Ok, maybe I should say TWO items involved in the survival kit....

The real answer, despite your many guesses, is....

a space heater from Lowe's!

With goals of low electric bills comes the realization that winter can be kind of miserable for 3 graduate students trying to make ends meet. After a ridiculously high (and unexplainable) electric bill last month, it was decided to turn the heat off as much as possible.

It seems that the only difference this has made to my warm-natured roommate is the application of one more long-sleeved shirt. For me, lounging on my couch now involves chattering teeth and a desperate search for my pink Snuggie.

To fight off the winter chill, my mom bought me a small space heater from Lowe's to put in my room. I questioned this little guy's power and ability to ward off frostbite. I am ashamed that I ever questioned its faithfulness. In fact, it consumes my thoughts during the day.

....I honestly find myself daydreaming about curling up next to my space heater when I get home. Right after I get into my comfortable clothes, I fire that little guy up and usually end up falling asleep after a few minutes by its warmth; it's like a humidifier to my chilled soul.

Being a raised-in-the-pew Christian, I would be remiss to leave this blog as a ridiculous ode to a space heater and not tie in some far-stretched application.

Love this quote: "Like the light of a bright candle and the warmth of a fire's glow, we brighten every corner when we let God's love show."

When you look at my new best friend, he doesn't look like much. He's a small, black box. "This thing can't possibly create enough heat to keep me warm," you may think upon first glance.

....But you're wrong.

Likewise, we are called to--every day--find small ways to bring warmth and love to those around us. People may underestimate us and say, "What good can one person do to make this situation better?"

I think God has called us to be a lot of things, but I also think he called us to be space heaters. He wants us to light up whatever room we are brought into and fill the people in it with warmth and love. I know that wherever I bring my little furnace friend, I find contentment and hope that I am not going to freeze to death this winter.

I want to be that for other people. I want them to know that they can come home at the end of the day and depend on me for a steady reassurance of God's faithfulness.