Student of the Word

So, I am the kind of person who likes to have everything planned out. I mean everything. I even put "Eat Breakfast" on my Google calender. I take pleasure in setting goals. I cling to my schedule and to-do lists. This summer, I was all over the place. After spring semester, I spent a few weeks back home. It was hard at first living without my normal routine. It always takes awhile to figure out what to do with all that summer free time. Next thing I knew I was setting out for a mission trip! I was in Oklahoma for a few days for training, drove down to Texas for more training, then on to Panama. There, I got to see God do great things on the mission field. Just when I was getting used to the work we were doing down there, the trip ended and my team had to head back to the states. A few days after getting home, I was back up in Gainesville taking summer classes!  This summer was filled with many different circumstances. Two weeks ago, my mom and I took a road trip up to...

One of my favorite go-to verses recently has been Galatians 6:4. "Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else. For we are each responsible for our own conduct." When I'm not paying attention to the "here and now" of my own work that God has laid out for me, the only other option I can think of is to start focusing on other peoples' work. I begin comparing myself to others. Here is a silly example, but hopefully it makes my point. As a Christian, when I see someone who frequently posts bible verses on Facebook, sometimes I'm tempted to compare my spiritual walk with whoever is doing that and feel inferior to them. I don't know if anyone else thinks that way sometimes, but it happens whenever I'm not paying attention to God and the work He has for me. Instead of being encouraged by their well-intention post, I feel guilty for not p...

"We have lived in fear, and our fear has betrayed us." This is a line from one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands, the Oh Hellos, called "I Have Made Mistakes". Today, I want to talk about fear. In the past, I've been afraid to take risks, so I tried to avoid things I thought I couldn't be good at. I've been afraid to get hurt, so I never climbed too many trees, or tried to backflip off a trampoline! In middle school, I was afraid of not fitting in or being cool. In high school, I was afraid of AP Calculus. I know! I'm scared to even say the word. Calculus!!! Going off of that, I have to take Calc 2 in the Fall! Please keep me in your prayers. In recent months, I have struggled with fear of people's perception of me, even to a level of social anxiety.  Also, I've feared the thought of dating relationships. In fact, I've never actually had a girlfriend. I admit it! I am honestly content in being single. ...

Who am I? Have you ever asked that question as you're staring intently at yourself in front of the bathroom mirror or as you lay in your bed starring up at the Justin Bieber poster on your ceiling? How do you answer it? What's the first thing that you're quick to identify with? Lately I've been learning a lot about identity. What defines who I am? In college, you meet a lot of people and consequently you must be prepared to answer...the big 3! 1. What's your name? Marc. duh.  2. Where are you from? I usually say Orlando. I'm really from Mt. Dora but no one's ever heard of that place. 3. What are you studying? Accounting!!! so exciting right?! ...yes. Yes it is. As long as you know the answers to those three questions, you can get by in any collegiate social gathering. But beneath every person there is a life and a soul. A past full of joyful memories, hardships, or a combination of the two. A present full of personality,...

Hola amigos! Mi nombre es Marc Mansfield, and don't worry, that's all the spanish I'll dish out for now. Welcome to my blog! If you don't know me already, here's a brief summary of my life. (If you don't want to read it all, you can skip to the last paragraph.): I was born in Birmingham, Alabama, a hardcore redneck baby. When I was about a year old, I began to develop a thick country accent. My parents became quite concerned and decided that it'd be best to move us somewhere far away from that place where the skies are so blue. We moved to Marietta, Georgia to a big white house where my brother Michael was born. I was about four years old at the time. From what I'm told, I used to get sick all the time and had bad asthma for the first few years of my life. My mom had to give me breathing treatments with this freaky machine that made weird noises. When I was five years old, my dad sold the business he owned, and we decided to move down to Sanford, F...