Miracle Moments
Brought to you by: Molly Maid of Birmingham, www.mollymaid.com/birmingham
“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans.” Proverbs 16:3
Scarlet Stearns is a recent graduate of ASCEND, a support branch of Big Oak Ranch focused on serving young adults, ages 18-22 years old through spiritual, professional and personal life training as they seek to walk the path of their God-given purpose. Through this ministry, Big Oak Ranch provides support for each young person’s goals, whether they are attending college or learning a skilled trade. Stearns shares her reflections on how God has used ASCEND to help shape her future.
“I woke up on graduation day so excited and grateful- it was fun celebrating my graduation from Samford University with so many different people. It’s a surreal and awesome accomplishment when considering the circumstances I’ve walked through, and the challenges life has brought. I knew from a young age that I wanted to go to a university to further my education. I wanted to get a great job and have a successful career – I always had hopes of doing more than being a victim of my past. I chose to go the ASCEND route for one, because I just love Big Oak Ranch and can’t imagine my life apart from it. However, it really made me stand out among all of the other college students.
When I was 15 or 16, I really started to realize that I wanted to pursue something higher than just me and that I wanted to live a life that impacted people beyond just Scarlet. A couple of years ago, I started a blog and it’s called Feel the Smile, a platform that gives Biblical encouragement for practical struggles tailored towards high school and college girls. I just love having the opportunity to share God’s story and share what He’s done for me and show other people that He wants to do the same for them.
ASCEND does a really great job of showing you what a privilege it is to have these four years to prepare for whatever you want to pursue – you are equipped with everything to do it and mentors who do a really great job at equipping you with that confidence. Not only are you given the tools they teach you but also with the words that they speak into you, because they just believe in you more than you even believe in yourself at times. On graduation morning, I woke up and had 20 text messages from people who were congratulating me and and so many were people from Big Oak Ranch and from ASCEND, which I feel like encompasses what the last four years of college with ASCEND has been like – being supported, being loved, being cheered for, and being celebrated..”
-Scarlet Stearns
