People: Chris Ward

I'm a senior, my last quarter in college. There are a lot of people who have made a major impact in my life over the past four years and I want to make sure that I tell them how much I Love them. This space is for that, to tell people what I really think, how much I really Love them, while holding nothing back. I'm going to try and do two a day this quarter, making sure to get at least 100 people in. This post is about one of my very best friends, Chris Ward. Chris, I Love you so much. Let me preface this by saying that there is no way that I could say as much as I would like to say in this space. You have Loved me too much these past few years. I first met you at the beginning of my sophomore year to much hype via Nick Brown. You have lived up to it. You have always been this loud, kind of goofy guy who is at the same time a great communicator, but it is also the case that you Love Jesus so very very much. What you do so well is that you rejoice when I rejoice and mourn when I mourn, always pointing me back to joy in the proper time. You seek to serve Him at all times, and that is not to be underscored. You do not always do it perfectly, but none of us do. You have always showed Love to me. Sophomore year when he hung out and shared testimonies, and even all of the hang outs besides that. Last year though was when we got really close. Having you around was so good for me. You made sure to always be pursuing me, and even now you are one of the people who pursues me where I am at, and I do not feel like I always need to pour into you, which is a nice change; we pour into each other. We are people who have always poured into each other, and our relationship is nothing short of beautiful. You have not been too afraid or too timid to call me our when it is necessary and/or beneficial. You seek my good, that is what God does as well. You were an integral part of the best summer I have ever had, living with me in such a way that I felt Loved. We have ridiculous food experiments that I would not trade for anything. Despite all of the people that you have met and all of the people that love you across these four years, you and I share a very special bond, and that Grace has been true for a very long time I always feel like you honestly care about how I am actually doing, and that is because you honestly care about how I am actually doing. I have never had to wonder if you Love me or where I stand with you because in addition to everything else, you are encouraging as well, reminding me not only of what I mean to you, but pointing back to the relationship that we share in the process. I am being totally honest when I say I have the utmost respect for you, regardless of what anyone says, I am set on Loving and pursuing you for all my days. We have enjoyed being tall together, seeing midnight superhero movies together, rejoiced in mutual people who have affected our lives, and I consider you a part of my family. I pray that God continues to knit us closer together, as crazy as that seems, and I pray that God gives me the grace of pointing you toward Him and much as you have done for me. Something that I have never told you: Near the end of fall quarter my sophomore year Jordan was being really inconsistent in when we met for discipleship and I had to call him out on it. He corrected it, but going in I started thinking about whom else I would want as a discipler. You were the only name in my head.