18 Things I’ve Learnt, By The Time I Turned Eighteen

I just recently turned 18 and I thought it would be fun to do a blog post like this.
Other than the first one being first, this is in no particular order.
Here we go…

1. Everything is found in Jesus.
Whatever you need, it is found in Him
and He gives it abundantly.
But more than anything, receiving Salvation by His love & Grace is the best decision you will ever make. (100% guarantee)

2. You never regret doing things you’re afraid of.
Messing up doesn’t equal failure.

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability to do it anyway.”

3. Sleeping is very important.
Seriously. Sleeping changes your life.
Don’t oversleep though, you can have too much of a good thing.

4. It’s important to do the things that make you come alive.
Your gifts are purposefully chosen by God, for you to use. Remember though, you are giving it to Him, first & foremost.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works & glorify your Father in Heaven.
– Matthew 5:16 (NIV)

5. Giving & receiving, both carry GREAT value.
Freely you have received, freely give.
– Matthew 10:8

Receive freely & give freely.

To be a good giver, you have to be a good receiver.

6. Do it with your whole heart.
Embracing something is the key to enjoying/loving something.

Whenever I face something that makes me uncomfortable or just isn’t my “cup of tea,” I just have to make a choice to embrace it, for what it is & not for what I want it to be. I’m not always good at this, but it is amazing how all of a sudden you can actually love something just by simply embracing it.

7. Forgive quickly.
I know in the moment, you really want to hold on to that annoyance, anger, hurt or offence and it can be the hardest thing to choose, to let it go.. But as soon as you do, you feel so much better. Unforgiveness is doing yourself a disservice, because it’s exhausting holding onto all that gross stuff. Forgive, as quickly as you can.. Don’t dwell on it, a second longer. Choose to love & think the best of people, no matter how hard it is.

8. Feed yourself with goodness.
Have you ever heard the saying, “you are what you eat?” Okay, so I’m not actually talking about food.. Although I love Food! Mexican, Asian, Italian and anything chocolate is what I love to eat!

Just as that saying means, if you eat lots of bad, fatty, sugary foods your body will end up feeling bad.
What you feed yourself on, whether it be, T.v, social media, books, lectures, sermons, the words of your friends, whatever it is.. if you feed yourself with bad things, those bad things will become what you believe, what consumes your thoughts, your heart, what comes out of your mouth and the actions that you take. If you feed yourself with gossip, gossip will come out of your mouth. If you feed yourself with lies about yourself, you’ll probably start to believe them. Everything is feeding you. If you continually watch T.V shows, where everyone is mean, you’ll probably start to be mean. If you read lot’s of fearful posts on social media, you’ll start to be fearful.. I’m sure you get the picture. You are what you eat. So, feed yourself with goodness.

9. Have fun!
Sometimes society doesn’t have much of a value for Fun. To value fun, doesn’t mean to prioritise it over everything else.. It just means to value it. Full stop. Sometimes you have to do things you don’t love, but you can still find ways to enjoy it & have fun! It’s also good though, to take time out to do things you find fun! It energises & refreshes you! So, what do you find fun?

10. I really love coffee!
Just because, you’ve hated something for as long as you can remember, doesn’t mean, you won’t wake up one day and fall in love with it.

Try new things and things you haven’t liked in the past, You may just realise it’s your favourite.
Break out of your regular habits, & do something a little different every now and then…

11. Travelling teaches you some of the most valuable lessons in life.
At least once in your life, I encourage you to experience a completely different culture.. It’s amazing what you learn when everything is so different to what you are used to. Different foods, different languages, different customs, different ideas of what is acceptable… So much is different, but you realise what is the same. Love.

12. Quality over quantity.
Investing in a few good friendships is far more rewarding, than being “popular” & having lots of friends.

Don’t be worried about how many people know you & want to be your friend. That doesn’t matter.. Just find the ones & twos that you connect with & spend time investing into that friendship.

13. God ALWAYS comes through.
Not once have I seen Him fail.
Faith is easy. It’s actually just trust & trust is easy, when you know the one you’re trusting, is the epitome of trustworthy. He never fails!

14. He makes everything work together for good.
Your life sometimes may look like the messy side of a tapestry. All these pieces of stitching that you just don’t understand the purpose of, but one day you will see the beautiful picture on the other side & it will all make sense.

15. It’s okay to be different.
In fact if you’re not, you’re probably being fake. Because we’re all uniquely designed. Just be yourself. Don’t try to be different though, just be you.

16. Perfection is the thief of productivity.

17. Wisdom rarely has instant gratification.
Wisdom’s delayed but long-lasting gratification is SO much more rewarding than any momentary satisfaction.

18. You are, who you are.
You don’t become greater around people you see as lesser than you & you don’t become lesser around people you see as greater than you. As Theodore Roosevelt said, “comparison is the thief of Joy.” Don’t compare yourself.. You are on your own race, a race that’s different to everyone around you. That’s why you can’t compare. You are who you are, & who you are is beautiful. So, keep winning your own race.
Keely Hughes