Double For Your Trouble | Stepping Into 2022
The time in which a year comes to a close can be emotional for a lot of people, whether it's due to immense gratitude and the relief that they're stepping into yet another chapter of their lives, or it's because they're feeling heavy due to their perceived lack of accomplishment and the void in their heart. Whichever side of the spectrum you find yourself on as you read this, I want to encourage you that the end of a chapter is a blessing depending on how you choose to look at it. Did the year come to an end with you failing to achieve your every goal, and ruin your chances of ever becoming successful, or did it simply provide the opportunity for you to approach things differently and start fresh?
I personally fought tooth and nail to come out of 2021 having accomplished at least one of my many goals. The thing is, although I entered this year with my expectations of what it would be like, how my success would play out, God definitely had other plans. To be completely honest, I had no idea what was going on like 97 percent of the time. 2021 was definitely a year of walking-on-water type faith, and it was scary. I had left 2020 feeling like the worst had passed, and I genuinely did not expect to go through half of the things I did. A lot of it, if not all of it, was spiritual. I was often put into extremely uncomfortable positions where I had to continue to stand on the promises God made me, despite how crazy it made me look. There were countless times where I even questioned my own sanity.
The intensity at which I was attacked by the enemy foretold just how massive the blessings God had in store for me were (because he doesn't attack what isn't a threat). My patience was tried, my flesh was tempted, my character and sanity were questioned, my name was dragged through the mud by people closest to me, and my attention was ultimately being drawn towards everything that contradicted what God had spoken. People who lack an intimate relationship with God, and a true understanding of what it means to be devoted to Him, often think that having "faith" is easy, and that couldn't be further from the truth.
For those that this resonates with (and you know who you are), 2021 was indeed the epitome of struggling in private, where nobody could really see the pain and hurt that you experienced. The sacrifices that you chose to make because you knew that there was greater ahead. They heard about your faith and scoffed. They doubted the extent to which God would move on your behalf. They doubted God Himself. I'm here to encourage YOU, that 2022 will be a year of public blessings.
No more lack. Every seed sown and watered by your tears will be reaped this year. No more shying away as God places you in the environments that are conducive to your success, your elevation. You were faithful, and you chose to keep trusting Him despite how the circumstances presented themselves. 2021 was a year of development, where the weight of the wait, the struggle, the backlash, and the hopelessness all played a role in strengthening your faith muscle. You made it out on the other side, and this is just the beginning!
For those of you that are reading this and you feel that it doesn't quite resonate―you didn't spend 2021 making your pursuit of God a priority, and you don't feel as hopeful about 2022 as you'd like― I want you to understand that this new year is your chance to start anew. The chapter in which you chose to indulge in your earthly desires, the chapter in which your own little world didn't include your Heavenly Father, can either end with a semicolon or a period. If you choose to enter this new year operating out of selfishness (the unhealthy kind) and pride, believing that it's your life and you know what to do with it, you're closing the door for God to move on your behalf and elevate you in ways you can't even imagine.
Change comes with sacrificing what we're used to, and sacrifice goes hand in hand with putting our pride aside and surrendering to the One who is truly in control. As long as you choose to disregard the fact that you are not in control, you choose the path of mediocrity. There's only so much we can achieve without divine assistance and protection from the One who formed us in our mother's womb. God wants to bless you! He wants to fulfill your heart's desires! All He asks is that you acknowledge Him and the sacrifice His Son made on the cross for YOU. He wants a relationship with you. He wants you to trust in His authority and plan for your life!
I mentioned this in the word God gave me to release on New Year's Eve called "The Illusion of Time", but the enemy has been deceiving you, making you believe that a relationship with God is boring. He's been convincing you that a relationship with God will cause you to miss out, that you won't be able to experience life to its fullest because God won't allow you to do certain things anymore. In reality, the enemy is using you against yourself and keeping you from the most amazing life you can imagine. God isn't this strict, scary, mundane being. He's a compassionate, fun, and loving Father, and He has so much in store for you this year if you would only trust Him with your heart.
My purpose behind writing this is to let you know that regardless of where you stand, regardless of how your year ended, your perception is everything. I could sit here and complain about all of the crud I went through in 2021, but I choose to focus on the blessings that were birthed due to God's faithfulness and the grace He gave me to keep trusting in Him. I choose to focus on the fact that I know my Father's character, and I wouldn't have experienced the valleys without the promise to experience a hilltop view. You can choose to have low expectations for this new year, you can choose to focus on what didn't go your way in 2021, or, you can choose to put your faith in your Creator and try Him out for a change.
What do you have to lose?
Talk soon, xoxo
Originally posted on January 1st, 2022