The "Ugly Side" of Walking By Faith

I titled this blog "The 'Ugly Side' of Walking By Faith" because truly letting The Lord lead your life definitely has it's challenges that most people looking into your life will never see. Your flesh is literally being killed off step by step and it isn't a pretty process. I get emails, every few months or so, from women who are inspired by my story of moving to Atlanta and want to do something similar. I try to do my best to respond and encourage, as The Lord leads, but ultimately I want them to seek God and truly make sure it is Him and not their emotions. The purpose of this blog is not to take away from the miraculous work that God does in a person's life when they decide to walk by faith. Rather I want others to better understand that walking by faith does not mean that all of a sudden your life will be perfect. We often see the life someone appears to have based off their social media accounts and gravitate towards their story. Pretty soon if we are not careful we begin to idolize them and compare our lives to theirs. What we fail to often remember is that social media gives us all an opportunity to portray whatever image we want to the world, in a matter of seconds. Most of the time we spend at least a few minutes making sure the caption, filters, and editing are just right. We showcase our strengths and victories but rarely do we showcase our life in the midst of the struggles, tests, and trials. So you may think you want to be where a certain person is, but you have no idea what they might have gone through to get there. Honestly had it been up to me, I wouldn't have even stepped out in faith 2 years ago. I was comfortable where I was and was living what I thought to be a pretty good life. If The Lord hadn't made it extremely uncomfortable for me and opened my eyes, I would probably still be in NYC. I didn't move because someone else had or because I thought it looked cool. I didn't consult 10 different people and get their opinion first. I moved 880+ miles because GOD TOLD ME TO. That's it! It wasn't an emotional decision but something I knew that The Lord spoke to me about and confirmed multiple times. I had no idea what I was signing up for when I moved though. I thought that after stepping out in faith once my faith journey would end there, but oh how I was wrong. The attacks and trials I faced trying to move to Atlanta did not compare to what I experienced once I actually moved.

Can I be honest? My life in Atlanta has not been easy. Oh you may see my Instagram account and think that my life seems so amazing but I go through some stuff, on a regular basis, just because of the position God has put me in. Yes, I have seen the hand of God in my life every single day but the tests and trials that I have gone through to get here have been intense. I've made many mistakes and wanted to quit multiple times. I have been stretched like none either physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. When I first moved here I took a job that God never told me to and ended up spending more money to pay for gas than what I actually made working. I tried to make friends for the first 2 months, but it seemed like I couldn't truly get close to anyone. I was tormented, almost every day for 4 months, by the enemy constantly making me feel like I was worthless, made the wrong decision and missed God's Will. I contemplated moving back to Baltimore, on and off, for 2 months. When I talked to my family about my situation, they would say stuff like "no one told you to move down there in the first place." No one could understand why I left NYC where I was teaching dance 5 days a week, living in a nice apartment, and paying my bills on time to then taking a nanny job, struggling to pay bills, and living with a family member. I slept on an air mattress for 5 months, that stopped inflating after 2 months. Also the place that I lived didn't have heat and of course that winter Georgia reached record lows, which caused me to get sick. Everyone seemed to have an opinion on what I was doing and their solutions were always the opposite of what The Holy Spirit was encouraging me to do. I have other friends who have moved and had to sleep on couches or in their cars for days. I know people that had to be separated from their families for months and others who moved into basements, until they could get on their feet. Some of them couldn't find jobs for months or only could find jobs that did not cover all of their bills. They all left their comfortable lifestyles to follow God, even thought that meant being placed in uncomfortable situations.

Though life has been ROUGH at times, I will say that I have learned that God is truly my Jehovah Jireh (My Provider). My relationship with God continues to grow, as I am continually being stretched and pulled to increase my faith in Him & His promises. I have learned/am learning to trust Him like never before. He is building my endurance and ability to make it through rough seasons and still count it all joy. Prayer has truly become a way of life for me, because otherwise I would have quit a long time ago. It's been an uncomfortable season, but I know it is necessary for what God has called me to and where He has called me to go. I am learning that my treasure is truly in heaven and to be content whether I have plenty or nothing. That process takes time and being emptied and broken time and time again.

A lot of us, in America, have bought into a lie that we are supposed to live a life free of troubles and trials. The Lord never promised us anywhere in His Word that we would lead a trouble free life nor set that as a standard/goal for us to strive for. We have taken the "American Dream," thrown God in the mix, and subconsciously or consciously brought that mindset into the church. People come to Christ, nowadays, and see Him as a "genie in a bottle" or someone that is supposed to make them happy, but that's not true Christianity. We have brought our selfish desires into the church and boiled the Gospel down to making it about obtaining money, growing our businesses, getting married, having the perfect family, and living your best life now.  Encouragement serves a great role in the church but we must make sure that we are still using God's Word as a source for correcting and teaching as well. We have preachers out here who are adding & subtracting from God's Word to appease man, which is weakening the strength and power of the "American church." They are not equipping their congregations to be able to endure the hardships that Jesus said would come. So when something bad happens these people want to give up on God and say stuff like "I tried God but it didn't work out" or "God failed me." We aren't creating true converts that have had their hearts transformed by the Good News, but instead we have people who are only acting religious as long as it benefits them.  Now this isn't every church, but now that we are living in the end times, a great majority of the sermons that are being preached are "tickling more ears" than they are convicting and piercing hearts. Hardships are inevitable in this life, with or without God as our Lord and Savior. If we weren't going to face problems then there wouldn't be Scriptures like these in the Bible:

"I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33

"For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him."

Philippians 1:29 

"So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God."

1 Peter 4:1-2 

"So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while.  These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world."

1 Peter 1:6-7

"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love."

Romans 5:3-5 

"Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing."

 James 1:2-4

 

 

If you are a believer the amazing thing is that God actually uses all of that suffering, pain, and hardship to work for your good. He causes it to strengthen you, prepare you for whatever is to come, and to minister to others.

 "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them."

Romans 8:28

I didn't write this post to discourage anyone who believes that God may be telling them to step out into the unknown. We all must be obedient to what we truly believe that God is showing us to do. I just want others to count the cost and be careful not to manufacture their process. Don't idolize the lives of those who you may follow on social media or see at your church, who seem to be leading a better life than you. STAY IN YOUR LANE! It's so important that you don't look at someone's life and think you need to follow what God told them to do, in order to accomplish what He has told you to do. Don't go and quit your job or leave school because someone else did. You may be reading this and think that's crazy but believe me people do it all the time and are even doing so right now. The Lord has a particular plan and special path for you to walk upon. You will end up missing out on His Will for you, by trying to follow the blueprint He designed for someone else. You are so unique and dear to God's heart, that He created a plan for your life before you were even in your mother's womb. It doesn't matter if God's purpose is for you to minister to 5 people or 5 million people, you must remain faithful to complete what He is showing you, not your neighbor. As believers, we don't walk by sight, but by faith. You should expect tests and trials to come because they are inevitable. If you are walking in the Will of God you are not exempt. In fact, the enemy will actually try you harder because you are being obedient and now a much bigger threat to his plan of destruction for this world. Your walk with God is not always going to feel good or comfortable but we have to keep eternity in mind! We have to get to a place where we have armed ourselves in The Lord, so that when the enemy attacks we are able to stand and fight back against His fiery darts. If you feel like you obeyed God in a particular area and then everything started to fall apart, don't worry you are not the only one (I've been there multiple times). God is just taking you through a process of trusting him and a season that will not last forever.

My best advice to anyone that believes that God is telling them to move, leave a job, start a ministry, or anything that requires you to completely step out in faith, is to PRAY! Get in a quiet place and ask The Lord to show you His Will. Sit there and keep seeking Him until He gives you clarity. Then be open to Him revealing to you what He actually wants you to do. Let God truly guide your steps, don't run ahead of Him and try to manipulate the situation. Don't ask for step Z and you haven't done step A. Even when you don't understand and people are calling your crazy, just keep moving forward. God knows exactly what He is doing and it's your job to follow Him. He may tell you to move somewhere and not allow for you to get a job for 8 months because He wants you to spend time with Him. Do it! He may tell you to quit your job for a season and rest. Obey! He may tell you to start a ministry and you have no resources. Submit! Don't get discouraged if things do not happen in your timing or how you thought they would. You may have doubts, be confused, and feel like you made the wrong decision but just keep an open mind and cling to Him like never before. He is with you and He is for you.

"Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you."

Deuteronomy 31:8

Until next time,

Cierra 

xoxo

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