Grateful for God's faithfulness

Today I want to share how God has been faithful, and to share all the little blessings I am grateful for. My God is a GOOD God and I cannot keep that hidden. I want the world to know! The first thing I am grateful for is God showing me that I am going to be used for his glory despite several illnesses that had me convinced would render me unless. More than once over the past few months when I felt I was a failure or garbage, God spoke truth into me. In those moments God whispered in my ear “I am bigger than any illness you have. Trust me”. It was a simple two sentences that had so much meaning to them. At first I thought it was just me wishing he had said that, but he repeated himself a few times to gel in my mind that he was speaking to me and his words are the sovereign truth. A month or so after the last time I heard him say that, I have to say with gladness that he has been faithful. I am seeing the right doctors to help manage my PCOS, and for the first time in longer than I can remember, I have been genuinely happy and cheerful. I don’t feel like my world is falling apart every day, and I haven’t gone into a depressive episode in a very long time. I actually feel like my mind is mostly balanced for the first time in my life since I was a young girl. I still have anxiety and depression, don’t get me wrong, but it is manageable with a few tools. God is helping prepare me to be working at my full potential in him. He isn’t going to leave me a mess and he does in fact have a bright future for me. Just a little while ago he reminded me of some of the good qualities he has put in me, and that those good qualities will be used for his glory and good.


If I were a dog I think i’d either be a border collie or a border aussie mix because those are some of my favorite breeds, and because we share a lot in common. I love to use my mind and will get bored if I am not doing something that is actively challenging my mind. I also love to lead and have an independent streak. I like to plan and organize. I am also an overseer. I see the big picture and how everyone will play a role in that. I am ambitious with a desire to become a director one day and maybe even own my own business where I am self employed. I love working with others, but doing the same tasks everyday would bore. I can see potential in everyone, despite their weaknesses. When it comes to their weaknesses I like to work alongside of them to strengthen them, helping them become the best version of their self they can be. Herding dogs are highly intelligent and will get bored if they are not mentally stimulated everyday. They also are gentle with their flock and work to help keep their flock in the best position possible. Similarly I have a desire to manage people in the workplace, being a transformational leader that listens to them and encourages feedback. I’d love to oversee things in the workplace and give people tasks that they will thrive with. Tasks that will make them feel important, and remind them how much they mean to the organization. I am not a person who could sit at a computer all day working on repetitive tasks, I need to be assisting and working with others. The more I pray and ask God to guide me as to what he has in store for me, the more he develops leader characteristics in me.


I used to give up if I couldn’t figure out something quickly, or kept making the same mistake. However, God has used several things to help improve that weakness in me. He has taught me to have patience with myself and to lean on him for guidance when things aren’t working. He has used each of my animals to develop different areas in me. Luke taught me that giving up too soon means you miss out on God’s blessings. When I first got Luke he had some issues from being abused. He also began territorial marking in my apartment and I couldn’t get him to stop having pee accidents. I was frustrated and wanted to give up so quickly, but my love for him kept me going. I am so glad I did because little did I know he would be such a blessing in my life. He compliments me well and he is my heart dog. He can make me very angry sometimes if he decides to resource guard a bone or not listen, but he also brings an unexplainable joy. When I first adopted Luke I had no idea how much dogs were going to be a huge part of my life, but I can say I love it. God knew how much I would love animals before he even created me, and he had a purpose for the bond I would have with them. They are a reminder of his perfect unfailing love, and they have taught me countless important lessons. They have made me a better person<3. Mae is a second runner up for favorite dog I’ve had so far, and she is so sweet and even tempered. I am really hoping she will become my next service dog as she is quite attached to me and smart too. The only thing she does that drives me crazy is not wanting to poop outside in the cold or pouring down rain. I’ve learned to not stay mad when she is stubborn because she is but an animal and she will learn what I expect of her in time just as Luke has. I couldn’t imagine my life without at least two dogs now as the dynamic seems perfect, and it is one of things in life I get the most joy from, aside from Jesus, God and my husband.


Another thing I am grateful is how well my husband and I go together. We literally balance each other out and are truly soulmates. My husband is highly intelligent and we both are analytical. He likes working on specific details and the technical aspect of things, while I enjoy planning and looking at the big picture. I am idealistic, while his realism reminds me when an idea may be not what I think it is. If one of us is down, the other knows how to fix it. My husband loves everything computers. I love everything animals. We both love good music from lyrics down to instrumentation. He is an introvert and I am an extrovert. We both love adventure and traveling. We both love Jesus and are ambitious. I am have the motivational gift of exhortation, while his is prophecy. We both are blessed with the gift of discernment of spirits. The Holy Spirit gives us insight as to whether something is of God, of Satan, or fleshly. He has the gift of knowledge while I have the gift of wisdom. Being gifted multiple spiritual gifts is a huge blessing and responsibility, so we are eager to see how God wants to use those in us for his glory and kingdom in the future.


One final thing I will comment on today is that I am thankful for God allowing me to spend time with Luke, my dog with kidney disease. I thought for sure Luke was going to die a few weeks ago and had begun grieving his impending loss. I would cry everyday wondering how I could handle losing him at the young age of 4. As a was an emotional wreck, my friends and family began praying over him because they knew how much he meant to me. Suddenly I noticed that he was gaining weight back and had in increase in energy. Also for the first time his gums were not dry, rather they were hydrated. He has been going strong for almost a month now and while I know his time will eventually come, I am so thankful to have him acting like a puppy again. Seeing him play daily with his little sister Mae and seeing him smile melts my heart. He hasn’t been in pain for a while and it’s just great what God can do. I really have so much to be thankful for when I look at it all. God has blessed me with great family, friends, animals, husband, college, ambition, healing and management of disease and illness, food, clothing, extra spending money, overtime opportunities to help pay off some bills, joy, safety, protection, fun. I could go on and on. I just felt compelled to share how good my God is to encourage you and remind you that he also desires to bless and grow you. While I am still far from perfect, God remains faithful in sanctifying me to become more like Christ. He reminds me that my future is bright since I am a child of his.