10 Lessons from the Past 10 Years
I’m turning 30 tomorrow. Yikes! I can’t believe how fast time flies! I was reflecting on the past 10 years, and it is amazing how much can happen in just 10 years. I got married, had 3 beautiful children, 2 miscarriages, I lost my sister, then my father, and through it all Jesus never let me go. I’ve had so many great, joyful moments, and I’ve had many sorrowful, heartbreaking times. Through all these years, though, God has been the common thread through every moment. I cannot look back and not see his face, even in the dark, frightening moments when death was lurking and I felt alone and confused, when I begged to see his purpose and plan and didn’t hear an answer, I still can see that the Lord was with me, strengthening me and carrying me through.
So here are 10 things I know and can testify to that I learned over the past 10 years:
1. Christ is all, and is in all. There is nothing I have ever gone through that I cannot find comfort for and teaching about in scripture. There is hope in every situation knowing that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sin, that he rose and conquered death 3 days later. Nothing trumps Christ, and anything that comes in the life we live for him is not in vain.
2. God will not let you go. I have honestly had times when if it were up to me I would call it quits. On my own I am too weak, too selfish, too easily distracted, too…fill in the blank. I am imperfect, but Jesus is perfect. The Holy Spirit is a deposit guaranteeing our salvation. I don’t have to worry about failing God, because the truth is, I fail all the time, and I will continue to fail. But God in his great mercy loves me because he is good, not because I am. So I can rest in the assurance that he is way more consistent and reliable than I am, and he who has promised is faithful!
3. Death is awful. I hate it, and in my experience it has not been something you can get over. I miss my sister and my father literally every day, my heart aches for them. But God hates death, too. And Jesus rose from the dead so it is defeated and we will live again someday. That is very good news.
4. Friends are a great blessing. I am so thankful for our friends. Our friends have walked with us through good times and bad, they have celebrated with us, they have wept with us. They have reminded us of God’s faithfulness and confronted us in our sin, they have sacrificed their time and money to serve us. God has used our friends to show us his love and faithfulness in so many ways.
5. Marriage is a gift. I cannot imagine going through the past 10 years without my husband. We started dating over 12 years ago, and we’ll celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary in September. He is my best friend. I love being with him, when I am away from him I cannot wait to go home to him! I love how God has made me more like Jesus through marriage, what it’s taught me about love and faithfulness. Marriage is truly a great joy.
6. Motherhood is a very sanctifying experience! My children are such a gift from God, I love them with all my heart, they are so much fun and such a delight. I truly enjoy them. But I have to say in honesty that being a mom has grown me significantly. From the heartache of trying for so long to get pregnant and then the grief over 2 miscarages, to the daily quest for patience and wisdom in raising them, it has definitely changed my character and helped me to understand more my relationship with God as my father and how I relate to him as a daughter.
7. It’s important to always be in the Bible, studying and growing. There is so much to learn, and bad teaching can get into your heart quickly and take a long time to unlearn. It’s better to learn the right way the first time!
8. God doesn’t break his promises. The Bible is like a binding contract, we can trust what God has said in it to be true. I learned this lesson big time when my father passed away and his wife of a couple of years unscrupulously winded up with all of his assets. I had always taken for granted than one day I would inherit money when my father passed, and I didn’t receive even a penny. It was hard to accept. But I read in Colossians 3:24 “from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ”. I know that there is an inheritance waiting for me in heaven, I live for Jesus and I will get to see him face to face one day. I can count on that.
9. My hope is in Christ, not in people. People will fail me as much as I will fail them. When my hope is in Jesus and not in people, I will still get hurt and go through hard times, but I will remember the price Jesus paid to save me from my sin and I can show more grace when I feel wronged.
10. “Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees” (Heb 12:12) and get ready to run! This life is hard, but God is good. Run for the glory of God, and fight, fight, fight!
