Renewed Day By Day

“If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith!”

-Luke 12:28 (NIV)

This verse came to my mind this morning as I took this photo:

I’m going to admit it. Sometimes it is hard to trust God.

Growing up, there were many times when my family was not sure how much food we would have for the next week. But God always shown through.

God always provides, maybe not when we want Him to or how we want Him to, but He always does...

When my mother lost her job when I was growing up, we were worrying a lot about money. When she was volunteering as a teacher for Vacation Bible School at our church, one of the other women asked me to get the key to our family van. I did not think twice so I got the key. Later, when we were getting ready to leave the church, we opened up the van. Our van was full of food and supplies. I still cry to this day thinking about it. One of the women at my church decorated the van with Bible verses, including this one:

“For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.”

-Psalm 91:11 (KJV)

In high school, when I was going through a period of “couch-surfing” due to being evicted, one of my teachers gave me a huge bag of really nice hand-me-down clothing. It did not matter to me that the clothes were used. It meant the world to me to have "new" clothes to wear to school.

After we moved in to a new apartment in the middle of my senior year of high school, I started to receive college acceptance letters. Our new fear was now how I was going to finance college. The money that my grandparents had saved up for my education went towards my oldest brother's funeral costs. I was literally left with nothing. But that did not phase God for a second.

Once again, God provided and I recently graduated from college.

I cannot even begin to tell  you how many hours I spent in college trying to figure out how I was going to pay the tuition, how many sleepless nights…

“Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”

-Matthew 6:27 (NIV)

None of us truly can add an hour to our lives by worrying.

Since I have an anxiety disorder, sometimes it is very challenging to not worry. But when I start to worry about things, I try to remember how far I have come and how much God has helped me through every single obstacle I have faced. Why would He stop now after everything He helped me get through?

The question becomes not about if He is going to provide or answer my prayers, but how He will.

With God, we truly have nothing to fear, because He is always on our side.

I’m going to admit it… I think our world needs to change in major ways. I am deeply saddened to know how many people do not pray on a daily basis. Prayer, to me, is the essence of our relationship with God.

The points in my life when I had the most doubts about God were not only the most difficult points in my life, but they also were the times when I was not in communication with God. It was not that He was there… I was just too stubborn to listen. I thought I could handle things on my own. It is really difficult to think about some of the things I said about God. I literally thought I could do everything by myself.

The more I have been in communication with Him lately, I have realized how much I need God to get through the storms. I also realized that our world needs to listen to Him more than ever.

My family has not had a car for six years. I never got my license because the car I was supposed to drive ended up being totaled by a family member. I spent a lot of time frustrated at this family member. How could they leave our family without a car? How could they do that to me? How could they make me have to ask for rides all the time?

But the more I am without a car, I realize how tremendous of a blessing it is not to have a car. I feel like when people drive, they miss out so much of the beauty of God. As they rush to the next meeting or their next destination, they do not have a chance to enjoy the beauty of the sunsets, the sunrises and the beauty of nature. Instead, they are buried in rage at other drivers or so distracted by where they have to get to that they miss the beauty.

I feel completely blessed to not have a car. I highly prefer to walk everywhere I have to be, because I get an opportunity to enjoy all of God’s creation. He speaks to me through nature.

Many people ask me where I take my photos. Most are shocked when I tell them that it is somewhere they pass by all of the time.

I am left asking, When did our society get too busy for God? Why is our only communication with God usually the one hour service on Sunday?

The more time I have spent with God lately, the more I realize how powerful, how majestic, and how beautiful He is…

I am literally going through one of the most difficult times in my life, but the more time I spend with Him, the more I realize that God’s got my back when nobody else does. He can piece together my life in a way that nothing and nobody on this earth can. He is not just a crutch… He holds my life together when I literally feel everything falling apart. He weeps with me, empathizes with me, and is there when my surroundings seem dreary, cloudy and dark.

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” 
-2 Corinthians 4:16 (NIV)

Let God renew your life. I can promise you from experience that it will be the best step you ever make in your life. Allow Him to be the center of your life. Allow Him to take away your fears and doubt.

And it’s not just a two-second decision. Walking with God is a process and a journey. I did not just wake up one day and say “Hallelujah! Jesus is the center of my life.” For me, God has shown Himself in so many parts of my life that I have no other decision but to believe in Him and spend my life getting to know Him.

My pastor posted this video and I wanted to share it, because I think it really illustrates how God can take our brokenness, the points when we feel “worn,” and make something absolutely beautiful with the mess. He truly can take the worst situations and turn them into something absolutely gorgeous and amazing.

I cried the first time I watched this video because I have felt "worn." I have had many moments in my life when I felt like I couldn't go on. My prayer is that no matter where you are at, no matter how difficult things are in your life, that you allow God to work through you and in you.