My greatest problem in life is solved.

I know what it's like to feel alone. I know what it's like to be broke and desperate. I know what it's like not to feel good in your own skin. I know what it's like to feel like there is no one who understands. I know what it's like to cry for a week straight. I know what it's like to put on a fake smile so no one asks you how you are. I know that feeling where you feel like your life is falling apart. I know that feeling where you feel like your friendships and relationships are disintegrating. I know that feeling where you feel like everything is going wrong in your life and nothing and no one could even fix that. But that is okay. Because I also know that feeling of pure joy. The feeling that even though things are in a rough spot, everything will be okay.

I can't help but feel it lately. I have been praying for the Lord to give me peace in my life. I have been praying for the Lord to change my heart. I have been praying that the Lord will help me cling to Him when I am in a lowly and painful state. I pray for the Lord to help me be a Christian example. I pray for Him to lead me into righteousness. I pray for the Lord to heal me of my insecurities and find SECURITY and HOPE in Him. I have prayed for the Lord to help me flee from temptations and deliver me from evil. I pray that even for a minute I will pause and thank Him for all the wonderful things He has done for me! He has given me a place to live, clothes to wear on my back, food to eat, money to use as a resource for all those things, and He has given me family and friends to help look after me, and help me get through this tough life so I don't have to do it alone!

I have prayed this prayer for so long that I finally and truly feel that way. I feel secure in knowing that the Lord holds my future. The Lord has a plan for my life (Jeremiah 29:11) and He has showed me that I should not worry about anything (Luke 12:22-34). The Lord has written the story of my life. Day by day, he turns the page to a new day, a new beginning... That His love never ceases, his mercies never come to an end and are new every morning, and that His faithfulness is great (Lamentations 3:22-23). He knew from before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) what my life would look like, who would be in it, and what I would do every single day that I am living and breathing. He knows me inside and out and still chooses to love and forgive me... No matter what I have done, "as far as the east is from the west... He has moved my transgressions from me" (Psalm 103:12). He chose to leave my sins at the feet of the cross. He doesn't hold them against me. He does not make me feel guilty for my wrongdoing, because He "keeps no record of wrongs" (1 Corinthians 13). This feeling has never given me a greater joy. My greatest problem in life is solved. The Lord has taken care of everything.... I no longer need to worry!

Couldn't help but just share how the Lord has helped me find joy! Praise Jesus!

XOXO

Psalm 100:1

In my own personal T.A.W.G (Time Alone With God) I came across Psalm 100. I absolutely LOVE the psalms. This specific psalm is of giving thanks; and the chapter begins with; "His steadfast love endures forever". The first verse reads,

"Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, in all the earth."

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord. Sounds easy enough, right? Well, for some people it's not. It's hard for some people to understand that if you don't have a great singing voice that you can't sing at all. You can.

God created you and made you. If He didn't create you with a singing voice like Mariah Carey or Frank Sinatra, who cares? God doesn't want us singing for the approval of man, anyway. He wants us to sing praises to HIM. He's the only one that matters when it comes to our God-given gifts. Don't do it for anyone but Him. He doesn't care if you sing off key or you're tone deaf or you sound like a dying cat. He cares whether or not you are glorifying Him. That's all that matters in the end.

To this day, I still shudder when I think about the time I screwed up a solo on Christmas Eve 4 years ago. But you know what? I still did it, even when I cracked on the high note. A lot of people in the church barely noticed it and they commented me afterward on how beautiful it was. At the end of the day, I am always going to be my worst critic. What they saw was the beauty of Christ when I sang it and that's enough for me.

Making a joyful noise gives me a whole new outlook on my life. God gave me a singing voice, something that a lot of people don't have. I am blessed beyond measure to be able to use it for his glory and to sing praises to Jesus on and off the stage at church. I love to sing with our small group up front but I also love singing to Jesus in the pews. I don't care where I am, but I love to sing and I am so happy that God has given me this precious gift! Forever thankful!