Day 24: Nicole Rebholz
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6
New Year’s has been difficult for the past few years, as it marks the anniversary of some significant losses. Every year, I feel confident that I have moved further in my journey through grief, but when I approach the days immediately following Christmas, the heaviness of the traumatic memories always hit harder than I expect them to.
On New Year’s Eve of 2023, I chose to walk into 2024 with full prayerful confidence that it was going to be a good year. I prayed and trusted it would be a year that I stopped “getting through” and would be a year of great growth in all areas of my life.
A few days into 2024 another situation rocked our family in a way that made all of 2024 a very challenging year. Many days, especially in the earlier part of the year, felt so robbed of hope and peace that I felt physically ill.
Through it all, thanks to the encouragement of good friends, I chose to praise God and asked that He help me practice grace, forgiveness, faith, wisdom, and humility. This wasn’t always easy, as I often get lost in my own selfishness and pessimism. Any time I found myself slipping from prioritizing my relationship with the Lord, the doubts, fear, and anger began to slowly creep back into my life. He loves us so much, and He knows what we are without Him in this fallen world. He desires a relationship with us, and as some of my favorite verses from Isaiah 61 reminds us, He wants to “bestow a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61: 3 NIV). I know, because He did that for me, despite me being wildly undeserving.
Through His divine mercy and grace, He revealed blind spots in relationships that needed tending to, and then began to build those relationships back stronger than they ever were. He revealed ugly parts of me that I thought were just the makeup of my character, and He began to change my heart. He changed mindsets and broke strongholds. When it felt like all was lost, He took what felt like a devastating and hopeless situation and provided restoration, peace, and mercy. He took what was ugly and began to build back beauty. Though we are still very much in a season of walking through this challenge, I know God is faithful.
The NIV translation of Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us “…in all your ways, submit to Him.” He loves us so deeply that despite our imperfect nature, He promises to direct our path. We are required to seek and submit to Him and in ALL our ways and He will align our hearts with His.
You may not suddenly acquire the things you have been asking for, but what you ask for will change to align with His will. And the peace that accompanies that? It will sweep you off your feet. As I reflected on 2024, I realized God answered my original prayer. Though it felt many times like I was treading water, I didn’t just “get through” the year, but witnessed growth, and in ways I didn’t even anticipate.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your faithful promises. Thank You for Your love and Your mercy. Thank You for promising beauty for ashes and a double-portion instead of shame. Thank You for Your many blessings. Help me align my heart with Your will. Help me submit to You in all my ways. Give me wisdom to recognize when my own will gets in the way of fully submitting to You. I love You, Lord.
New Year’s has been difficult for the past few years, as it marks the anniversary of some significant losses. Every year, I feel confident that I have moved further in my journey through grief, but when I approach the days immediately following Christmas, the heaviness of the traumatic memories always hit harder than I expect them to.
On New Year’s Eve of 2023, I chose to walk into 2024 with full prayerful confidence that it was going to be a good year. I prayed and trusted it would be a year that I stopped “getting through” and would be a year of great growth in all areas of my life.
A few days into 2024 another situation rocked our family in a way that made all of 2024 a very challenging year. Many days, especially in the earlier part of the year, felt so robbed of hope and peace that I felt physically ill.
Through it all, thanks to the encouragement of good friends, I chose to praise God and asked that He help me practice grace, forgiveness, faith, wisdom, and humility. This wasn’t always easy, as I often get lost in my own selfishness and pessimism. Any time I found myself slipping from prioritizing my relationship with the Lord, the doubts, fear, and anger began to slowly creep back into my life. He loves us so much, and He knows what we are without Him in this fallen world. He desires a relationship with us, and as some of my favorite verses from Isaiah 61 reminds us, He wants to “bestow a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61: 3 NIV). I know, because He did that for me, despite me being wildly undeserving.
Through His divine mercy and grace, He revealed blind spots in relationships that needed tending to, and then began to build those relationships back stronger than they ever were. He revealed ugly parts of me that I thought were just the makeup of my character, and He began to change my heart. He changed mindsets and broke strongholds. When it felt like all was lost, He took what felt like a devastating and hopeless situation and provided restoration, peace, and mercy. He took what was ugly and began to build back beauty. Though we are still very much in a season of walking through this challenge, I know God is faithful.
The NIV translation of Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us “…in all your ways, submit to Him.” He loves us so deeply that despite our imperfect nature, He promises to direct our path. We are required to seek and submit to Him and in ALL our ways and He will align our hearts with His.
You may not suddenly acquire the things you have been asking for, but what you ask for will change to align with His will. And the peace that accompanies that? It will sweep you off your feet. As I reflected on 2024, I realized God answered my original prayer. Though it felt many times like I was treading water, I didn’t just “get through” the year, but witnessed growth, and in ways I didn’t even anticipate.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your faithful promises. Thank You for Your love and Your mercy. Thank You for promising beauty for ashes and a double-portion instead of shame. Thank You for Your many blessings. Help me align my heart with Your will. Help me submit to You in all my ways. Give me wisdom to recognize when my own will gets in the way of fully submitting to You. I love You, Lord.
Posted in Boast in the Lord \\\'25 pt2
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