Intentional Hope

“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.”

What’s one of the hardest things in life that you’ve experience? Were there times you felt you wouldn’t make it, but you did anyway? Think about those times. Aren’t you glad you didn’t give up. Look at how far you’ve come. In the process towards anything great you will experience hard times and this is just a reminder that “You Can Do Hard Things.”

Hard experiences will make you begin to question everything, “Why is this happening to me?” “What did I do wrong?” “Why am I not there yet?” “Why, why, why, why..etc?” Sometimes you may not even understand the gravity of what God has for you and the circumstances are meant to push you forward into growth. 

“In any given moment , we have two options: step forward into growth or step back into safety.” -Abraham Maslow

Growth is often painful at every level of life. When you’re a baby you experience teething pain, then you hit puberty in your teen years, and as you get older there is a wide variety of the pains that you can experience. Those pains either add to your quality of life or force you to take care of yourself so that you can have a better quality of life. Whatever the reason may be, you find ways to adjust, grow and get better through it. Just like the hard times that you go through. You may not understand exactly why certain things are/ have happened but there is something in you that has to believe that there is something greater on the other side of it.

I’ve been sharing my COVID-19 journey in my last two blogs and i’m on day thirty seven since testing positive. Somedays are hard because when you think you are on the other side of this virus it comes back and slaps you in the face. My symptoms have been better I still have on and off nausea, cough and headache but the major pains like chills, fever and body aches that I had in the beginning no longer exist. I remind myself everyday that I can do hard things, and just because something is hard doesn’t mean its impossible to overcome.

After testing positive three times, I’ve been at a place where I’ve been wrestling. What do you do when what you see doesn’t line up with what you believe? In the words of Craig Groshel, “You can either give up, deny that it’s happening, or you can wrestle.” In the wrestling endurance is built, faith is tested and strength develops. I am a person of faith so I know God is real, i’ve prayed for people and seen them healed on the spot, I’ve seen God’s faithfulness in my life so there is no way I’m giving up. And I will not deny what I’m walking through because this process has really taught me so much and it is very real.

This has been such a time of growth for me, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. I don’t think its a coincidence that it happened right before I turned thirty either, which I celebrated my birthday on Saturday. I’ve had so much time to reflect on my life and think about what I want to see happen in the next ten years of life. I remember when I turned twenty years old, I wrote down all the things I wanted to accomplish before I turned thirty. I prayed over those things every day until one by one they happened. I like to document my journey so that I can always look back and remember Gods faithfulness in my life and the power of believing that great things can happen if you really ask and believe.

Although this birthday was celebrated differently I really enjoyed my day. If you know me, I really value simple things and experiences so it doesn’t take something extravagant to get me excited. I had a steak dinner along with bbq and I got a lot of gifts and surprises from my husband, mom, sister, best friends and cousins. It was all very special I watched some of my favorite movies, sat outside and listen to music it was very relaxing. Then I ate cake and chocolate covered strawberries which are my favorite so my day was completely made.

It’s the simple moments that give me the extra boost I need to keep going. The journey through life and experiences you face will not always be easy but I just want to encourage you to keep going and never give up. You are capable of everything you put your mind to, and you can do hard things. Don’t ever be afraid to look back and remember all you’ve gone through so you can see the possibilities and have hope for whats to come. Thanks for reading!

What’s one of the hardest things you’ve had to do? How did you overcome? I would love to hear your story.