Collin's Study Day

Since Kaleigh and Julianna asked me to contribute to their blog, I will attempt to sketch what a typical day (as much as a day is typical in homeschool families ;) ) is for me.

I wake up at 6:15 sharp every morning. Many times I will listen to music to keep me awake, as I start lifting a half hour later. I will many times do some light stretching or mobility work as a warmup.

Depending on the day, I will either do lower or upper body. Monday and Thursday are lower body days. Monday is training speed as well as building overall strength. Thursday is a maximal effort day-meaning I lift as much as I can in an exercise such as a squat or a deadlift. Tuesday is speed and overall strength for upper body, and Friday is maximal strength for upper body. 

I generally finish in less than an hour, so I will then do devotions and take a short nap before breakfast. I will start up CollegePlus studying at 9am, continuing on until lunch. After lunch, I generally check social networking and take about a half hour or do to chat with people on Skype, although the time I get on varies from day to day. During the afternoon, I will continue studying, but most of the studying then is on the Learning Network. After studying, I will do chores.

In the late afternoon, I will do stretching and mobility work. After that, I will either study yet again or relax until supper.

After supper, it is general family time until family devotions, which are usually around 8pm or so. After devotions, I will go back on Skype or just general time doing things. 

Depending on the day, I go to bed anywhere from 10:20-11:30. I usually fall asleep around 11:30, to wake up again at 6:15 sharp the next morning.

Bible Study

A little over a week ago, I attended a Skype Bible study call with a couple of my friends. I have attended a few other Bible studies on Skype over the past few months and also at my church throughout the years, but I was amazed at how helpful this call was to me and how it affected my entire week.
The week prior to the call was a hard one. Though I tried not to be, I was still a little afraid of upcoming activities, like my Sociology test, and then dealing with some disappointing interruptions that made my schoolwork schedule pay. And a few other things that made for a very discouraging week.
I almost wanted to skip the Bible study call, but I'm so glad that even though it was a bit unexpected, we still did one.
We were going through topics that we could talk about and the one topic that really stood out was: "Fear and Discouragement". Collin, a CollegePlus! student, explained the verses as Kaleigh and I took turns reading them. It was inspiring to see how many verses spoke the same thing: "Be strong and of good courage". God was giving that comforting reminder over and over again: to put our trust in Him and to not be afraid of things that are going wrong in our lives. I truly felt that God's hand was in that study. :)
As Collin had pointed out, "Be strong and of good courage" is not an "option", it is a "commandment". I had never really thought of it in that light before, but it really made sense. God didn't want me to just put my faith in Him when I felt like it. It was something that I had to do.
It reminded me a little of my junior high and high school years, when I really didn't want to get up in the morning and study. I could have found a lot of "better" ways to spend my time. But as I analyze it, I see a comparison between doing my schoolwork and trusting in God. True, schoolwork may not always be fun or easy; just like trusting in God through "thick and thin" is not always fun and easy. However, getting an education is important in our lives on earth; just as trusting God constantly is important in our daily lives and spiritual walk.
Worrying about the problems and disappointments is sometimes the easiest thing that I can do, but doing so will not draw me closer to God.
Since that Bible study on "Fear" and "Discouragement", I've found myself thinking about situations where I could have been trusting God more and what situations in the future that I might face and how I can handle them differently. It may not be easy, but with God's help, I can learn to trust Him in whatever situation I'm in. :)

God bless,
Anna

1 Chronicles 28:20

Cassandra's Study Day

Hello everyone! How are you all today?

My name is Cassandra and I’m seventeen years old. When my friend Kaleigh (and her friend, Anna) asked if I could write a post for her new blog, I was excited to be able to tell you all a little bit about my typical day as a CollegePlus! student.

I’ve been enrolled in CollegePlus! for about nine months and, to date, I’ve earned 57 credits from passing twelve CLEP tests and six FEMA courses. That makes me only one more CLEP test away from becoming a college junior.

On most mornings, I wake up at 6:00 and use every iota of willpower to get myself up and out of bed. Once I’m awake, I have my quiet time with God; just reading my Bible and praying. After I’ve eaten a quick breakfast and had my mug of coffee, I try to get some studying done.

The rest of my day is filled with piano practicing, physics homework (I’m still a junior in high school), household chores, and family time. For most of my college tests I spend some time each day reading in my textbooks and using the LearningNetwork (which is basically online flashcards) to study. Currently, I’m not working on any test, but I’ve been spending my time writing essays for a college course that I’m taking through Louisiana State University. I write my essays, mail them to my professor, and then my professor mails me back my graded papers.

When I study, I love to remind myself of Isaiah 40:31.

“but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings like eagles;

they shall run and not be weary;

they shall walk and not faint.”

If my day has been productive, I spend my free time replying to emails, talking to friends on the phone or on Skype, blogging, reading, writing in my journal, or going outside for a walk.

Even though CollegePlus! has added to the business of my life, I love how flexible it is.

Some days I’m so busy with family activities that I hardly have time to sit down, let alone study. With CP!, though, that’s perfectly okay. I just make up the time on another day and, with my coach to encourage me, my family and friends beside me, and by the grace of God, the work always ends up getting done. It’s not easy and it takes a lot of self-motivation, but I feel so blessed to be able to pursue my college education faster, for less, and for sure.

Relationships

Relationships are like bank accounts. You have withdrawals and deposits. To keep a bank account from dying you must deposit frequently. Then when you need to withdraw something, it's there for you. The same thing happens with people. To cultivate a relationship you must invest in that person and they must invest in your life as well (a one-way friendship doesn't work usually). After you have "deposited" things in their life (ie helped them, encouraged them, taught them, been there for them), then you have room for withdrawals (ie asking them for help, requesting things from them). If you continually make withdrawals, your "account" will go bankrupt. We need to invest in each others lives and create lasting relationships.

Thanks to my dad for the comparison between relationships and a bank accounts. I wrote this after a stressful situation and I happen to be exhausted so I'm sorry that it's rather disjointed; it's just one of those important lessons that I learned that I wanted to write out and share. :) God bless.

~Kaleigh