It has been a little bit over a month, and the Lord has completely transformed my perspective. I’ve learned so many things about Him and so many things about myself, and I wanted to share some of them with you all.
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God’s plan is unthinkably bigger and unimaginably better than mine. Sometimes things won’t make sense to me, but His plan is so much bigger than just ME; He is working all things for good, for all His children. And He knows what is best.
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I don’t have to earn God’s love. I can’t. Nothing I can do could ever decrease or increase His love for me. His love is unchanging, unconditional, and unfathomably deep. It’s a truth I’ve always known, but I’ve continued living as if it weren’t true. I can stop striving and rest in the fact that He loves me. Just. As. I. Am.
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God uses little people to do big things. I don’t have to pretend to be bigger. In fact, it is so much more beautiful to embrace humility in my weaknesses, because when He does use me, HIS glory is so much bigger. I want to stop trying to live by my own efforts and be a part of His miracles instead.
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God speaks to me when I give Him the space to do so. I never knew this could be a two-way relationship, where we talk and spend time together and laugh and cry like friends, but it is! I’ve learned that I’m not just talking and praying to the sky – I’m praying to a LIVING God. He is moving and speaking always; I just have to open my eyes to see Him and tune my ears to hear Him.
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God is so, so sweet. He wants so badly for me to see all the little ways He’s trying to show His love for me, everyday.
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I cannot trust other people to fulfill my need for love, nor for identity. God is the one who will never fail me, who will never leave or disappoint, and He’s the only source of love I can build my life on. His love is all I need and so much more. No human compares.
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It’s okay to feel things other than happiness. In hard days, I don’t have to shove the dirty emotions under the rug. I can take them to the Lord, in all their ugliness, and He will do exactly what needs to be done with them so I can be healed, cleansed, and ready to receive real joy.
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I can love people I don’t necessarily “click” with. God creates the most beautiful friendships between unexpected people!
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The presence of the Lord falls in power when we worship in the freedom of the Holy Spirit. This look like unstructured praises, encouragement, stories, visions from the Lord, sobs, and dances.
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There’s a big difference between knowing the Lord personally and knowing about Him.
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We were made for God-centered community. To live life constantly seeking the Lord with all our hearts. But not alone – together. We were made to go through the dark together, shining His light for each other and praising the Lord as we go. We were made to be honest and real. To love each other even when it’s hard, and help each other love God when it’s hard too.
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The world is so much bigger than I ever knew! What I used to see through a peephole, I now see through a beautiful stained glass window. There are so many more possibilities in the world beyond the borders of America, and boy. I want to spend the rest of my life exploring them!
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Connections can be made with anybody, and it is SO FUN to make friends! To get to know people and love them as Jesus does. No language or culture barriers can stop Jesus from creating beautiful relationships.
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People are more open to talking about Jesus than I thought they would be. And it’s also easier than I thought it would be – turns out, when I open the conversations with boldness, the Holy Spirit moves! What do you know, God wants people to know Him more than I do!
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This is what I want to do for the rest of my life. The fulfillment and exhilaration I feel living for Him and His Kingdom…it’s unreal.
Thank you all for reading!
Loving you far,
Claire
