Indeed, I choose to follow You!

As I embark on my journey to the west coast, so many different emotions are brewing. I'm excited, nervous, happy, encouraged, sad to leave for another summer. But I am reminded that my emotions do not change our God. No matter how I'm feeling, He is still good, gracious, loving, kind, compassionate, just, merciful, graceful, mighty; I could go on and on.

Much has changed in the last year, the last few months, and even since last week. Having just graduated and moved, many unknowns cloud my mind. I keep searching for the answers to what the future holds - to where I'll be living come August, where I'll be working, if I'll be working; I could go on and on.

I've come to notice that I've fixed my eyes on the latter of these lists. My mind reels day and night and my countless to-do lists never seem to get me anywhere. I am lost, seeking to figure things out so that I can have a plan for my life.

See, when I focus on my plans, suddenly I am grasping at straws - looking to the right or left and focusing on my lack.

But God has promised me great things. It is by faith that I believe Him when He says, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope" Jeremiah 29:11.

I know that I am sinful and that my constant need to make plans for myself is my attempt at taking control away from God. It saddens Him and pains Him to see me attempt to be self-sufficient. But He delights in my return to Him. He welcomes me with wide open arms and embraces me with His loving mercy and grace. He sees me as His beloved daughter, clean and blameless because of what Jesus did on the Cross - bearing my sin and overcoming it on the third day.

I am forgiven, I am redeemed, I am set free from sin and death and I am alive in Jesus Christ! To know that in my head is one thing, but to believe it in my heart is a totally transformational experience, life changing, if you will! When I chose to follow Jesus with my life, I chose to believe that what God's word says is true, despite my circumstances and my feelings. Therefore, I will choose to fix my eyes on the Lord and His promises and His freedom.

Choosing to focus on what God has for us is empowering, but also challenging! We are training our minds in how to think and focus on the good instead of the bad, on what blessings we have been given and not on what blessings we don't have yet. But think about the freedom that lies in focusing on the Lord and His perfect plan! He will lead you and guide you, when you follow Him. His plan may not look pretty all of the time and it for sure will not be full of rainbows and butterflies always, but the love that He gives, that penetrates deep into your soul, will change your life forever.

Here are a few questions to ponder and perhaps comment about below:

In what ways am I fixing my eyes on my problems?

How can Jesus be the solution to my problems?