100th Post!

Happy 100th post! Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me along the way! I appreciate you so very much.

I'm standing on a staircase. I'm neither at the top nor at the bottom, but there are many... very very many stairs below me. How did I get to the stair I'm on now? I climbed there.

laid off from my job
moved away from everyone I knew
apartment problems
car problems
pneumonia
pneumonia again
unable to work
a 2 year battle of doctors telling me it was all in my head
hospitalization
losing a loved one by their own will
Myasthenia Gravis
more hospitalization
having to leave a loved one
plasmapheresis
surgery
pulmonary emobolism
POTS/Dysautonomia
having to move back in with parents
being in a battle every single day... against your own body

I climbed those stairs. I didn't know what each one would contain. Some I stopped on longer than others. But I always kept going. I never gave up.

I am certain there will be many more stairs in my future. But you know what is great about climbing the staircase? You can turn around, look back, look down, and say wow, I did all that. I made it.

Some people rarely deal with hardships in life, it's almost as if life is handed to them, an easy life, right there on a plate. And sometimes it's the people who you think least deserve such a great plate full of life... while those who strive to live a good life are handed garbage after garbage after garbage. It stinks right? Why do bad things happen to good people? I've got 3 points here.

1. I can't take credit for this one, I got the idea from the movie God's Not Dead... yes, I really liked that movie... and I highly suggest you go see it! And this won't ruin it, so keep reading. Anyways, maybe some of those who have those good plates, the devil just leaves alone. He leaves them alone because some of them are so far from God he doesn't even have to do anything! They are keeping away from God on their own! So why touch that? He wants them far from God and he doesn't even have to do anything! But then there are the good people who get so many bad things happening to them. Maybe it's because the devil needs to give them a fight, a reason to question God, to pull them away from their walk in the Light. If the devil already has you on his side, why put something bad in your way? If the devil sees you are on God's side, he's going to want to put you under attack. Keep that possibility in mind every time you encounter a struggle. It will make you want to push through it that much harder and that much stronger! Resist the devil and all his evil ways! Rebuke it in the name of Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior!

2. If you had no struggles in life, what have you accomplished really? Did you have anything that really opened your eyes? Changed your perspective? Transformed you into a better person? All those steps I mentioned, that's one heck of an accomplishment... and one that doesn't get recognized by society. But I am certain if you stay close to God in the midst of hardship, it will most definitely get recognized on the other side in Heaven.

3. To bring you closer to God. I don't know if I ever would have a personal relationship with Him if these things didn't happen to me. When we are weak is when He can show how strong He is. Glorify Him in all things. So for that reason, I can look back on these stairs and say wow I did it but if this is what brings me closer to God, if this is what transforms me into who He wants me to be, would I do it again? Would I choose to walk those stairs if I had the option of staying on one floor? Yes, I would. I would do it all over again for God is my strength and He can and will get me through it.

Don't focus on your struggles. Focus on your God who can get you through those struggles. Glorify Him. Put Him first in your life, and watch what amazing things happen to you, with you and around you. Praise Jesus!

God bless you all.