Ever have those days that just feel hard. Those seasons that feel like you are being drained one breath at a time. Like you wonder if you can literally even take another step forward. Maybe it feels like lately all you have been taking are steps backwards, steps that feel exhausting and steps that feel overwhelming. My sister today I want to bring you some relief and some hope. If you’ve been feeling like life has been taking a toll on you, please stay tuned…Jesus has a word for you.
The scripture verse(s) we talk about today include: John 8:12
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Sarah Elizabeth
Our Faith Your Day Declaration!
Jesus, thank you so much for loving me in the way that you do! You designed me on purpose for a purpose. I want to live to my full potential today, with a mindset that honors you and a soul that seeks to know you better. Jesus I know that you are the way, the truth and the life, and I ask you to guide me and reveal to me what it is that you want to show me here, have me experience here, and learn from this season. Help mold me and shape me into the best version of me. I will live today as your vessel ready to receive your word, respond to your promptings, and pour out your overflowing love to those all around me. Please allow your thoughts to become my thoughts, your ways to become my ways and your will to become what I truly desire. Jesus if you are in it I want it and if you are not I don’t! I choose to faith this day of life! I am so grateful to be your girl! In Jesus name Amen!
Ever have those days that just feel hard. Those seasons that feel like you are being drained one breath at a time. Like you wonder if you can literally even take another step forward. Maybe it feels like lately all you have been taking are steps backwards, steps that feel exhausting and steps that feel overwhelming. My sister today I want to bring you some relief and some hope. If you’ve been feeling like life has been taking a toll on you, please stay tuned…Jesus has a word for you.
In the winter my husband and I like to get outdoors and do some snowshoeing. We have a trail right across from our driveway that accesses kilometers of bush area that can be explored. Now for anyone who has never snowshoed before…or who might not be aware of what that even is (remember we have girls from all over the globe here), snowshoeing is where you put on regular winter boots and then over top you strap on a set of “shoes” that are essentially a light, oval frame that is usually strengthened by two or more crosspieces, strung with a material, and attached to the foot and that is used to enable a person to walk or run on soft snow without sinking. They help to keep you on top of the snow. So while we were out snowshoeing the content of this devotional flowed to my mind. I knew that God was using an activity that I love to do, to create a parallel and a comparison to living life with him.
Ok so picture this. For part of the trail that we went on, we have already been on it multiple times this year…so in essence those sections have been packed down. The effort needed to walk on them is minimal, it’s essentially just walking on a snow covered path. However, for a section of the trail that we were on no one had yet been on it this winter and therefore it was all fresh snow that had not been packed. For much of the walk I decided to go first, I wanted to break trail so to speak. As I took the lead every step became immensely harder than it had been on the packed trail. Every step was a step into a fresh patch of snow…a step that I sunk down into a bit, and then had not only my own leg to lift, but all of the snow on top of my snowshoe that had fallen in when I sunk a little bit…I was getting like a triple workout. I kept on trekking but my speed slowed down dramatically, every single step felt so much harder than it had been and after only a short section of the trail I could literally feel sweat starting to drip down my back. I was working so hard but moving so slow! We decided to take a little break after the hill part of the trail but that hill was crazy. I was leaning forward practically crawling up it, it felt so slow going, and every step was so strenuous. My heart rate at the top of the hill was 168 beats per minute which is about the max that I like to see me reach. I was working full power, with all my energy and making the slowest progress…isn’t that how life feels some days my dear. Like you are giving it your all, but getting almost nowhere…like you are to your breaking point and yet still have so far to go.
Well to finish off my snowshoeing analogy we finally reached the end of one section of the trail, and this is where we turned around to go back in the direction we had come from. And here is where everything changed! When we turned around my husband, who had been behind me going the one direction was now the leader going back…and I was not only following in his footsteps but we were heading back over a section of trail that had already been broken by both of us. What a difference! Following behind him made all the difference for me! I was no longer breathing heavily, no longer struggling to take the next step, I was simply keeping pace and following in his footsteps. When I looked at my heart rate the next time it was no longer 168 bpm, it was 128…which for me is just slightly higher than my average rate if I am walking briskly on pavement…it felt effortless! I was able to look up into the trees above us, take in the scenery, and just keep checking in with my feet to ensure there weren’t any hidden logs underfoot that I could trip on or branches to look out for. So much easier!
Girl, as I was making this realization in the trail, God reminded me how this is exactly what life is like when we choose to either go alone, or decide instead to walk behind him and follow in his footsteps. So I wonder…are you walking alone today…trying to break trail in your life, making limited progress but feeling absolutely exhausted doing it. Or have you learnt how much sweeter the journey is when you have Jesus ahead of you breaking the trail, leading the way and giving you clear footprints to step into? Check out this verse from John 8:12- When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
What a promise! This verse brings so much hope doesn’t it! I love how the first sentence of it give us a reminder about who Jesus is…the light of the world. The one who illuminates the way, the beacon that we can follow, the light that we can focus on. But then he makes us a promise that can make all of the difference for you my dear if you simply make it as a focus for you with each difficult step you are taking. Here it is again…Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.
Now wait, you might be saying, but my life is dark, I am lost, I don’t see any promise of life here. My sister, look closer, can you see Jesus out in front of you guiding your next step or are you looking around wondering where he is right now? The promise is specific…whoever follows me…that translates to whoever remains close to him, whoever keeps near, whoever doesn’t stray…the further you wander from the light…the darker it gets doesn’t it. And when Jesus IS our light…if you’ve turned from the light, lost sight of the light or created distance between you and the light then my dear it’s going to feel dark there…and that might be exactly where you are at right now…so let’s change that! Let’s realign your heart with his promise…the promise that he give us in John 8:12- When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Girls take that to heart, breathe that in, believe that fully.
Now here is where our enemy the prince of lies is going to swoop in and try to tell you otherwise. He’s going to remind you of the darkness you feel right now, of the uncertainty you have of the hope you are seeking and he’s going to get your mind spinning, doubting, and feeling like if Jesus really loved you that a life following him would be struggle free. No! Jesus promised that we would never be in darkness when we are with him…he did not promise that there would not be challenges, obstacles, struggles, heartbreak, loss…but when we walk with him through those difficulties we can still feel at peace, certain that we are heading in the right direction despite so much uncertainty. Jesus lets us know in our hearts when we take a step into his footprints or when we are wandering off. How does he let us know that…well he lets us feel it…when you feel at peace in a decision, then you can be sure it’s because it was the one he helped you make. When you feel calm when all you previously felt was uncertainty, it’s because all is well with your soul. When you experience glimmers of joy even when everything else is still going so wrong, it’s because he’s allowing his light to shine in your darkness. No things won’t be perfect when you follow in his footsteps, things won’t always be easy…easier than going on your own for sure, but there will still be obstacles to avoid and challenges to face, but the strain of breaking a trail through your life will feel different…what once seemed near impossible, will feel dramatically different when you are following in his footsteps.
If you’ve intentionally wandered from his path, he wants you back on it my girl…turn around, and you will see he’s right there waiting. If you’ve unintentionally strayed from his path over years of just trying to figure it all out on your own…call out for him…he wants you close. And if you feel like a lost sheep uncertain of where to turn next…please know that your shepherd is seeking you…he’s calling for you by name, and if you listen very carefully you will hear his voice…it sounds like a stirring, a prompting in your heart, and a reminder to simply take the next step today and follow in his footsteps. You will have no idea where it will lead you, but the journey is so much better, so much brighter and so much less forced when you’ve got Jesus breaking your trail for you.