As I keep up with Facebook while in-between lectures, I can’t help but think of all the new things I see happening and I love it! Even for my own family we’ve had a lot of changes from my brother being the last Cunningham high school, my sister leaving for the University of Arkansas, and I moved back to Columbia. I love seeing these kinds of achievements with everyone. But sometimes we don’t see achievements in our lives and we only see road blocks that either a person or a group of people has placed in our lives.

It’s very simple to lie down, take a nap, don’t do anything and find a new way around. Trust me, you can do that. I’ve had my fair share of challenges since arriving at Mizzou that’s made me want to pack it all up and head home, tuck my tail between my legs, and return to my comfortable bed under my parent's roof. Trust me, it would be less stressful and so much fun. At the end of every hurtle is a shining light, proud parents, and lots of congratulations.

When everything in our life seems to stand still, seems that the problems are too big, and seems that we should have lost all hope is when we buckle down and preserve. Personally, I turn to my relationship with God. On my way to church last week one of the preachers talking on the radio said, “Don’t pray to your God about your big problems, pray to your big God about your problems.”

This really settled with me and is very soothing for me to remember this while I face things that I don’t think I can overcome. I encourage you every day to not only have a conversation with God but also to acknowledge what makes you so unique and special. Every day, find something about yourself that makes you happy because, at the end of the day, those small issues that we get so upset about really don't matter in the grand scheme of life.

When it comes to finally demolishing those problems that we have to overcome, do it with confidence. Everything you do should be done with confidence but especially things that are holding us back from our real potential. I have the tendency to call my mother and say, “Right now it really really stinks, but one day this is going to make a great story.”

Struggles get even the best of us who seem to have it all together. Trust me, nobody does. We’re not perfect and we’re all human. But when it comes to giving up, don’t because you’re going to thank yourself for persevering and becoming diligent along the way.