Jakoby M.
If you're reading this, I want to remind you that you can overcome anything you are facing.
In life, we experience beauty such as traveling, having great friends, experiencing opportunities that can elevate us, reaching a goal we had set for ourselves, having a great job, being financially stable, attending a great church, etc. In those moments, we felt we were on top of the world. We're filled with so much joy. Indeed, my life couldn't get any better than this, but what about the moments when it feels like we've been experiencing challenges back to back? Moments where we were not in a good place mentally? Feeling stuck and alone? Finances are dwindling. Do you give up? Do you question why me? Why am I experiencing this? When will the storm pass over? These are all questions we tend to ask ourselves in those difficult times. Even though I've done and often still do this, let me remind you that you can overcome any temporary situation.
There were moments in my life where I found myself amid difficulty, specifically in these last two years, that I genuinely felt were meant to defeat me. These moments shook the foundation of my faith and left me wondering why this was happening. Why can’t things seem to go right? Why am I in this place that feels like I’ve been there for a long time? During these uncertainties, I learned that all the Lord wanted me to do was turn my face to Him. That amid these uncomfortable uncertainties, I should genuinely trust Him. That through this journey, doing it on my own will leave me nowhere but stuck, lost, and in an even deeper hole.
Coming into college wasn’t easy, as my family and I faced challenges. Being raised by a single mother of six wasn’t always the easiest. We were blessed to have a mother who possessed honest faith, love, kindness, selflessness, and more, but we also saw the things thrown our way. These challenges honestly had us going through the shaking, the beating, and the pressing of our faith. Moments when I was uncertain how things would get done left me wondering if God was really for me. How come it felt like things were hitting me back to back? Why us, God? This was a season full of uncertainty that genuinely had me wondering, but it wasn’t until having a conversation with my mother that I was reminded in James that we should view our challenges through the lens of faith. In James 1:1-4 it says, “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” This verse sought me out. I was reminded that trials aren’t random hardships but driven tools God uses to shape and refine our faith. From this, I saw how the Lord genuinely used these challenges to help me learn what it means to have faith in Him.
In this current season, I’ve learned and am still learning what it means to fully trust God when facing a mountain that genuinely seems impossible to get out of my way. What I’ve learned so far about trusting God is that to trust God is to trust in His reliability, His promises that He makes through His word, His strength, His grace, and His love. No matter what, everything I face is temporary. That when I’m in the fire, He is refining me to become more like him. He is so sovereign and graceful.
In testing my faith, I experience true victory in the face of the challenges. God’s guidance, provision and strength have been sustaining me. He’s transforming my perspective, teaching me who He is. This refinement shows me what having a deeper trust in God means—His love changed my viewpoint from Why me to Why not me, God? He has helped me view my challenges through the lens of faith and an opportunity to grow more into Him and be a vessel to those who may not know Him or may be going through the same thing I have faced that I can help encourage.
I want to encourage you with this. I may not know what you're going through, but God says that your Faith in Him can help you overcome anything. This thing that seems impossible to overcome is possible with God. Luke 18:27 says, "What is impossible for people is possible with God." May this be a reminder that you serve a POSSIBLE God who can do everything. Your mountain shouldn’t defeat you, but you are intended to beat it. Hold on to God's word and promise. Allow the Lord to work in and through you as He is so gracious and full of love.
So, if you’re reading this, let me remind you that the mountain in your way isn’t more significant than your faith, but allow your faith to be greater than the mountain that’s in your way because you serve a BIG GOD!
Jakoby M., Clemson University
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