Shift Your PerspectiveSample

You may not know this about me, but I got married at only 18 years old. I imagined growing old with my high school sweetheart, but only 8 years later found myself a single mom with two little boys. The next couple of years were challenging. Well-meaning, genuine people would try to comfort me by saying "everything happens for a reason." Their intent was sweet, but that did not bring me comfort because it did not make sense to me. I believed in God, but I didn't understand who Jesus was or the idea of having a relationship with Him. I was not living my life for Him, but instead living according to my own moral standards. The little I had heard about God was that He was loving and kind. I could not wrap my head around the idea that a loving God would plan for me to get a divorce. That a kind God would plan for me to suffer. I wondered if I was just a pawn in some game He was playing. If everything happened for a reason, then I needed to understand the reason He was making me go through this.

I began seeking Him and reading His Word. I started attending church and learning about my Savior. Do you know what I discovered? We live in a broken world. We live in a world where people sin because they have free will. I once heard a pastor say God will defend our right to free will all the way to hell. We get to make our own choices, and the reason that I went through a divorce was because of brokenness, sin, and personal choices. It was not because God planned it from the beginning. As I began to understand His character, I discovered how good He truly is. He said to trust Him and promised He would work all things together for the good of those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose. Yes, He allowed me to go through a trial, but He desired for me to trust Him to take my pain and make something beautiful from it.

He has done exceedingly and abundantly more in my life than I could ever imagine. I turned my life around; I really started living for Him. Over the next several years, I grew deeper and deeper in my relationship with Him. Today I have the most amazing husband, who faithfully leads our family and points us to Jesus in every situation. Every day I wake up and thank God for all the ways He has blessed me. That doesn't mean I don't go through trials, I do, but I know the Lord, I trust Him, and I have no doubt that in every situation He is working all things together for my good and His glory.

You might be facing a trial right now. You might be blaming God or questioning His love. I want to assure you that God is not some evil being planning and scheming to hurt you. He loves you deeply, more than you can imagine. He has a plan and purpose for your life. He desires to bless you. Seek Him in all that you do and begin putting your trust in Him. I promise He will work things out together for your good.

Now go let your light shine.