Life can be tough, especially in college; you’re at that age where you’re not exactly an adult but also no longer a child. You’re somewhere in between, possessing just enough freedom to do what you want while still being held responsible for the decisions you make about your future. You’re always stressed out. You’re going to get hurt, you’re going to feel like dropping out or changing your mind, and you might even want to turn your back on Him, your God, but I want to tell you this: your suffering is not in vain.
I want you to know that everything you are going through is a lesson. It’s all building you into a better person, a better version of you. The things you’ve asked from Him, the things you’ve told Him you wanted – those are things you have to be prepared for and you still need a bit of tweaking. The future, though bright, isn’t all about sunshine and roses. The path has twists and turns, cracks are in it, fallen logs in your way, and most of the time you’re not going to be able to see straight ahead of you. The weather is going to be unpredictable. The flood is going to knock you off your feet and the twisters are going to send you spinning into confusion, exhaustion and doubt, but with the strength that He is trying to build up in you, you’ll find that you know exactly where to find shelter when the storms break down your door.
You’ll find that the lessons you learn from trying times are exactly what you need to fulfill His plans for you. You’ve read Jeremiah 29:11 and Romans 8:28, and heard them hundreds of times, but there is a verse in the Bible that you may have never paid attention to: Ephesians 2:10. It reads: “We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” The most important part of this verse is one simple word: beforehand. So while you’re crying and stressing about what job you’re going to land after you graduate, if you’re going to marry that person you’ve been with for years, or if you even wanted to continue the major course you are currently in, He already have a plan laid out specifically for you. You are His child, His creation and you have a purpose.
