29 lessons learned by 29

In no particular order, here are 29 life lessons for my last 29 years:

1. Jesus is always faithful to provide for us.

2. A grateful attitude is not optional.

3. Exercise is important.

4. Life is the longest thing we'll ever do on Earth.

5. Following God's plan for my life has been so much better than anything else I would have dreamed up.

6. There are still many things I don't understand in Bible.

7. God is looking for humility. When he doesn't find it, he starts moving us in that direction.

8. Our identity can't be wrapped up in "being good at" something.

9. Have a really solid reason before you start to study Japanese, and expect your studies to take longer than you want to.

10. Learning how to apply faith to our situations and circumstances is key.

11. We're all looking to be known, liked, and trusted by others.

12. Following the voice of the Holy Spirit ends up better than any other plans we create solo.

13. You're going to lose sometimes, and that's okay.

14. Japan is one of the best places in the world to walk around and pray at night.

15. Eventually we need to understand how massive a problem our personal sin is so we can fight it with greater resolve.

16. When I don't write things down during quiet times with God, it means I don't value what the Holy Spirit is speaking in to my life enough to preserve it.

17. Music and worship are two of God's greatest gifts to humanity.

18. I'm praying for the grace to stand strong in the future, as I haven't met the most challenging season in my life yet.

19. You can never say thank you to others too often.

20. Jesus had a firmer grasp on reality than anyone who has ever lived and yet people still laughed at Jesus like he was crazy.

21. Miracles happen, I've seen and heard of God healing in amazing ways.

22. One of the reasons we don't share our faith is because we really aren't looking for opportunities.

23. Things can always be improved, the question is: whether it should be.

24. There is one particular basket that you want all of your eggs in.

25. "No" often opens up doors to a much better "yes" in the future.

26. I don't think you can be too careful with the kinds of media you consume.

27. Our generation struggles with the idea of justice, while desiring its fairness desperately.

28. Christ-centered reading of the Bible seems more revolutionary than it should be.

29. Some things are actually better than we imagined and we need to admit that, at first, we were wrong.

What do you think? Do any of these lessons resonate with you? Do you have your own list of life lessons so far?