“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-12
Thinking about the future often produces anxiety in us, even in the best of times. After we’ve lost someone close to us, contemplating our future is downright scary. What is the “new norm”? How can we even think about next month or next year when we are struggling to put one foot in front of the other, just to get through today?
Does it feel like the world is passing you by? After the memorial service for my brother Logan, I remember thinking, “Whew, I’m glad that’s over.” But unfortunately, that was only the beginning. Coming to terms with the fact that Logan was gone was beyond difficult. Outside of our family and close friends, everyone else went on with their lives. Life was back to normal for them. How could I pick up where I had left off? My brain couldn’t take in all that had happened. I walked around in a fog, sometimes searching through the mist to a clearing of sorts; other times, allowing the fog to envelop me. Sometimes I hoped I would wake up and this pain would have just been a nightmare and life would go on as it had before my brother passed away.
Unfortunately, this chapter of my life was here to stay. Whether I liked it or not, these painful days would become part of me, part of the fabric of my life that God was weaving for good. Through these difficult circumstances, God still has a plan for my life. As His word says, God has a plan that is for my best, not to create more hurt but to give me hope and healing. A future I can look forward to without fear or anxiety. A future that is firmly in His grasp, His strong grip. I don’t need to be afraid.
Amidst the foggy landscape in your head and heart, through all the brain-swirls of thoughts of fear and anxiety, pain and sorrow, do you trust God with your future? Will you take life one day at a time, one step at a time, as you move toward that future God promises you? A future of hope and healing? Move into your future as you trust God to take care of you. Step out bravely into the new world as you hold on tightly to Jesus’ hand.
Lord God, I know You hold my very future in Your strong hands. I trust You to have my good at heart. Help me to walk slowly, but surely, and bravely toward that new future of hope and healing as I cling tightly to Your hand. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Copyright © 2014 by Dawn Dailey. All rights reserved.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Thinking about the future often produces anxiety in us, even in the best of times. After we’ve lost someone close to us, contemplating our future is downright scary. What is the “new norm”? How can we even think about next month or next year when we are struggling to put one foot in front of the other, just to get through today?
Does it feel like the world is passing you by? After the memorial service for my brother Logan, I remember thinking, “Whew, I’m glad that’s over.” But unfortunately, that was only the beginning. Coming to terms with the fact that Logan was gone was beyond difficult. Outside of our family and close friends, everyone else went on with their lives. Life was back to normal for them. How could I pick up where I had left off? My brain couldn’t take in all that had happened. I walked around in a fog, sometimes searching through the mist to a clearing of sorts; other times, allowing the fog to envelop me. Sometimes I hoped I would wake up and this pain would have just been a nightmare and life would go on as it had before my brother passed away.
Unfortunately, this chapter of my life was here to stay. Whether I liked it or not, these painful days would become part of me, part of the fabric of my life that God was weaving for good. Through these difficult circumstances, God still has a plan for my life. As His word says, God has a plan that is for my best, not to create more hurt but to give me hope and healing. A future I can look forward to without fear or anxiety. A future that is firmly in His grasp, His strong grip. I don’t need to be afraid.
Amidst the foggy landscape in your head and heart, through all the brain-swirls of thoughts of fear and anxiety, pain and sorrow, do you trust God with your future? Will you take life one day at a time, one step at a time, as you move toward that future God promises you? A future of hope and healing? Move into your future as you trust God to take care of you. Step out bravely into the new world as you hold on tightly to Jesus’ hand.
Lord God, I know You hold my very future in Your strong hands. I trust You to have my good at heart. Help me to walk slowly, but surely, and bravely toward that new future of hope and healing as I cling tightly to Your hand. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Copyright © 2014 by Dawn Dailey. All rights reserved.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
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