We all have a beginning and we will have an ending to our stories. In between those two points will be many chapters that will play out. I think one of the struggles of this life are when transitions take place and we try to discern how to properly let go of the past and move forward into the next step of our journey. Things like guilt, shame, anger, bitterness, and hurt can tether us to our past chapters not letting us move forward to brighter days. Most of our stories will include a constant ebb and flow of periods of change. When I think of change, it makes me always reflect on the seasons we have each year. Some more pleasant than others, but each serves a purpose. In our lives, we will have seasons of prosperity and productivity, and seasons of heartache and disappointment. Seasons occur in our marriages, our friendships, our jobs, our parenting, and even our spiritual walk.
Let’s face it, we all like comfort and familiarity. There are seasons that make us feel protected but sometimes we settle in those moments for the sake of security and it really becomes a prison holding us back from our next chapter. A clean slate. A new beginning. The comeback. Our true potential. We were made for more than to sit stuck in our comfy zones because that is where we feel safe.
In those periods when things are smooth sailing, smiles are a blazing, we just want to hold on to that moment and freeze that time of bliss but as we all know change is a constant in our lives. However, God does not change. He remains faithful and consistent, standing firm on his promises no matter the season or chapter we are currently in.
I find it important to remember who has the pen and who is writing each of our stories. We can take the pen and try our best to write how we want to play our lives out, but God knows the beginning from the end. He sees the whole picture, he knows what is best. We have to lean in and surrender troubles, disappointments, fears, and hurts over to him completely so that we can move on to greater things. He doesn’t want us being stuck in a season where his light within us gets overshadowed by our shortcomings. I believe he has good things for us ahead, but we have to be willing to turn the next page which mean letting go of the previous page.
Our choices and actions will affect the words written in our stories. Everything we do has a ripple effect out within our circle of influence. We must choose wisely which is a very challenging thing to do at times. We cannot always base our actions on our emotions as our feelings can be deceitful. I have been guilty of this, have you? Our feelings can cloud our judgement and have strong pull on our thoughts but just because we feel that way, it doesn’t mean it is necessarily true. We react on how we feel versus the truth of the situation. May God help open our eyes and hearts to the truth. His truth.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5,6 ESV
Keep moving forward,
Hayley W
Unpolished & Imperfect 