REALIZING YOU’RE WORTH DURING HARD TIMES

Hey guys! It’s Julie here. I’m taking over the post today because I feel I need to share this message with anyone who may be going through any hardship. And just to preface this message, whatever you may be going through, you are loved by God AND HE IS WITH YOU!

Anyway, I feel that God has added many frustrating challenges to my life presently, and it has been hard trying to juggle everything going on in the physical world and my little mental world. I find that I’m constantly associating how much I’m worth with how productive or how many tasks I can complete. By that, I mean, if I don’t finish my to-do list, I feel like a lazy failure. Or if I’m feeling down or overwhelmed, I see myself as a weakling who can’t handle the pressure of life. Maybe some of you may feel the same in your various endeavors, and guess what? It’s okay! Everything you are feeling right now is okay because its all a part of the journey with God to help us become all that He has designed us to be – STRONG, MATURE, NOT LACKING ANYTHING.

With that being said, think about all you have done for yourself. Even if you only completed one thing on your agenda, think about the fact that you achieved something today! We have to realize that the creator of the entire universe carefully created each of us lovingly and carefully. So, what does it matter if I feel a bit down or overwhelmed? What does it matter what someone thinks of me? That doesn’t change who I am! The almighty loves me no matter what.

The previous paragraph isn’t merely conjecture, I promise. God proves to us every day that he loves us. He puts these challenges in our lives to reaffirm our senses of self and ultimately find Him and ask for His guidance. I listened to a podcast today called “Girls with Goals,” They spoke about why you DON’T need to change. They talked about how we always feel that we need to keep transforming and “grinding” all the time, and yes, most of us have a lot on our metaphorical plates, but that doesn’t mean that we aren’t extremely amazing for all the little things we accomplish every day. They also explained that you shouldn’t view your best self as someone separate from who you are now; it’s just a different version. You’re already astounding in God’s eyes, and He is just making you even more wonderful. Just keep in mind that the only person you can truly rely on is yourself, so treat yourself better! Everyone in the world could treat you terribly, but it would be irrelevant if you took the time to nurture yourself. Think about all your body does for you, your mind does for you, your soul does for you! You are here! So, stop, and smell the roses because look how far you’ve come.

To conclude our time together: if you take any advice from this raw, angsty 18-year-old, don’t be so hard on yourselves, dudes. I promise you, if you take some time for yourself, the earth won’t stop spinning. Feel everything you need to feel and get right back out there. Have a fantastic rest of your day and buy yourself some flowers lol. REMEMBER: God loves you and His wisdom, strength, love, grace, and approval are there to help get you through anything, one moment at a time.

“But the Lord stayed with me and gave me strength…” – 2 Timothy 4:17