Focusing on my brother

I've been missing my little brother horribly lately.  I was very excited when we were able to arrange a phone date tonight (it gets quite challenging w/ the time difference and our life schedules).  It was wonderful to connect about what is happening in his world and process what's playing through his head and his heart these days.  I feel blessed beyond words to have Joshua Paul Pearson as one of my dearest friends in this life.

Josh will leave for Focus Leadership Institute at Focus on the Family next week.  I attended this program (when it was under another name) in the summer of 2006 - it was a summer semester of Christian worldview studies and family life studies (marriage and parenting). - a program I would STRONGLY reccomend to any Christian college-aged student (check it out at http://www.focusleadership.org/  - tell them I sent you and they'll take extra special care of you ;)  

By far, my summer at Focus was the best summer of my life.  Living in Colorado was amazing.  It was the summer I fell in love.  It was the summer I learned how to be a wife.  It was the summer I decided to pursue psychology instead of a professional career of acting.    It was the summer I decided that I would continue to be in a courtship with a military man rather than the youth-pastor-type that I had spent a lifetime picturing myself married to.  It was one of the most formative experiences of my life to date.   I chose my path that summer.  Rather, God revealed and lead me through critical junctures in my life that summer. . .

I remember one of the first nights of us all being together being told, "your time here may reset your compass by a couple of subtle degrees --- but a couple of degrees can completely change your destination"  I have so many sweet memories of friends and fellowship that summer.  I am on the edge of my seat with excitement about what God has instore in the coming two months that lie before Joshua - I trust that they will be nothing less than incredible.  He's looking forward to getting to be a college student who can have a bit of a life rather than an engineering student for whom academics always has to take precedence over social engagements.  He told me about the small number of guys and LARGE number of girls in his class.  I chuckled, recalling what that was like.   I warned him that in coming weeks many a girl will likely lay in bed at night wondering if this wonderful Mr. Pearson is to possibly be her husband (concequently he has to really step up the guarding and defending of of their hearts).  It may sound crazy, but it's a Christian university setting ---- you'd have to be stupid to think that girls' heads were not going crazy with images of wedding invitations and rings when they meet handsome, godly young men like my little brother.  I WAS THAT GIRL!!!!    Heck, I had a boyfriend when I was at Focus as I still had to do the "now, is one of these guys actually meant to do my husband?" check. . . 

Praying for you.  Missing you.  Love you always little brother.  xoxoxo