Smiling again

It's been a while since I've last written and SO much has transpired in my life. I've worked at VBS, gone on a middle school church retreat and met the man of my dreams...all in a matter of weeks. If you had told me a few years ago that I would be glowing, ecstatic, and giddy beyond belief...I would have seriously doubted you. But what the enemy meant for evil, God meant for good.
I know many of you are still in the "cellar" wondering if you'll ever get out. Questioning if life will ever be good again - maybe for the first time for some of you. And I'm hear to shout a resounding "YES!" Life is hard, but God is faithful. He's got a plan for each one of us, and when we yield to HIS ways, he does indeed bless us. My reward came in the form of a Latin teaching, choir singing, singles leading, God seeking champion. I never dreamed God would have someone like this man out there - especially for me. I could believe it for someone else, but not necessarily for me. And the Lord called me on that a few months ago. We discussed that very issue - not accepting that God has good in store for me. As we conversed about this I asked my Daddy, "Why? Why do I struggle believing you have a perfect person for me out there?" And do you know what His answer was? "So you'll settle for what the enemy has planned for you." Talk about being stunned. It hit me hard. Jesus exposed the lie of the enemy and I finally started believing that He has a plan that includes not only good things, but the BEST. WOW! We SO underestimate our beautiful Creator! He must look down and shake His head, thinking, "Are we dealing with this AGAIN??" I'm so grateful for His patience with me.
So as I sit here writing this, I just want to extedn hope to my sweet female friends who are fighting the same battle of the mind, questioning God's goodness. We need to remind ourselves daily of how good He truly is. When we question His goodness, it's easy to fall into the lack of faith frame of thinking, and then the devil can wreak havoc in our lives.
I am a different person than I was four years ago, and I thank God for this journey, because although it's been so much tougher than I would have ever imagined it to be, I am a new creation. I'm happy, excited, at peace and...smiling again. Thank you, Daddy!!