When All Else Fails, God Doesn't

Hello everyone!!! Or hello to the few people that actually read these lol. If you are reading this, I really appreciate it! You’re super special to me!!!!

Today, I have it on my heart to talk about something that I have struggled with for soooo many years: putting my worth in things that I shouldn’t.

I think just about everyone has done this at some point in their lives, and if you are like the other 7 billion people on this earth, you KNOW that putting your worth in things that are not of God is really really dangerous.

I think high school was the peak of this issue for me.

If you know me well, you probably know I’m an enneagram 3. This enneagram number is called the achiever.

In other words, I am a very ambitious person who loves meeting my goals. In some ways, this has been one of my biggest strengths, but in other ways it’s been my biggest downfall.

On too many occasions, I have fallen into the trap of believing that my worth depends on my performance.

On my worst days, I have thought that if I didn’t earn this award, weigh this much, have this amount of friends, be the president of this club, earn this title, wake up at this time, and spend this amount of time with God, my worth would go down the drain.

On my worst days, I’ve thought that the climb to being worthy started over again each day, and only a set amount of steps would get me there.

On my worst days, the thought of failure terrified me, and happiness & fulfillment always seemed just out of reach.

Throughout out high school, I frequently thought

Once ranks are final, then I’ll feel smart. 
Once I’m skinner, then I’ll feel beautiful. 
Once I win another award, then I’ll feel talented.
Once I have x number of friends, then I’ll feel loved. 
Once I'm less busy, then I’ll feel close to God. 
Once I graduate, then I’ll feel accomplished. 

The list could honestly go on and on.

But I’d like to point out a keyword within each of those sentences. The world FEEL.

I think the biggest problem with the destructive mindset described above that I have more often than I should is that it is purely based on my own flawed feelings, rather than God’s sovereign truth.

I’m human, and so are you.

Despite my best intentions, longest prayers, biggest accomplishments, and happiest moments, I have never lived a perfect day. None of us have.

We are flawed in ways we can’t even see and broken in ways we’ll never admit.

Lately, I’ve spent a lot of time looking back on my life, whether that be by looking at old pictures, reading old prayers, or just thinking about the past. I’ll be honest, sometimes I laugh & sometimes I cringe.

When reflecting on life, the biggest thing that I wish I would have realized earlier is how much God loves me- how much He understood what I was going through, how much He wanted to take my worries, how much He was going to provide, how good things were going to turn out.

But above all else, truly, I wish I would have seen my worth for what is was IN CHRIST.

As important as grades are, they only measure so much of a person’s intellect.

As fun as leadership positions are, they only last for a year or two.

As nice it is to be graduated, life after high school brings just as many challenges.

As fulfilling it is to spend time with God every day, there will likely be a day that you miss it.

And what happens when you put your hope in these things and they fail?

When you don’t get the grade, when you miss the deadline, when you wake up late, when your boyfriend breaks up with you, when you’re not confident in your body, when you’re not getting along with your friends, when your weight fluctuates, when a loved one is sick, etc., etc., etc.

When all else fails, God doesn't.

My prayer for myself and for each of you is that we would learn to have an eternal perspective- that when the ebbs and flows of life come to steal our joy, we remain steadfast in our faith because of our firm foundation on what God says about us.

When in a moment of crisis, I sometimes forget what God says about me and my future, so I’m gonna put those things here as a reminder for myself and for you.

Watch and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe. Habakkuk 1:5

And surely I am with you always. Matthew 28:20

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted. Psalm 34:18

Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can’t heal. Isaiah 35:10

For He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. Psalm 91:11

The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble: and He knoweth them that trust in Him. Nahum 1:7

He makes everything beautiful in His time. Ecclesiastes 3:11 

If our minds are ruled by the Spirit, we will have life and peace. Romans 8:6 

Those are just a few of the many verses that can be comforting amidst the most challenging of life’s moments.

I hope that they helped you. I hope that they helped make clear that this life is temporary. I hope they helped you believe that God has really good plans for your life even if things look dark right now.

I hope you have the very best day!! Or if you haven’t had the best day I pray that you make the best of what you have left. See the blessings in the little things!!! You're doing better than you think you are <3

Love you all,

- Bailee !!!