15 Dec Thriving Through All Seasons
It seems like over the weeks I have seen a common theme throughout headlines of social media posts.
How to survive through the holidays.
None of this has sat well with me. At all. What I can’t get out of my mind is the truth.
Jesus didn’t die on the cross for you to merely just survive. He didn’t die for you to just barely make it. He didn’t die for you to spend time wishing away your days. He didn’t die so you could grumble your way through life as you wait for the next greatest thing. And he surely didn’t get beat or tortured on the cross for you to just survive.
He died to give you abundant life. He died for you so you could live life to the fullest. He died for you so that you could and would thrive in every season.
I get it. Life is hard. It’s so easy to just try to survive. Maybe you hate your job. Maybe your marriage is on the rocks. Maybe you don’t know how you are going to pay your rent. Maybe it’s that you recently lost someone you love. Or maybe you have been waiting a really, really long time for something you want, like a baby.
I don’t know what your situation is, but I do know this, your ability to thrive isn’t based on your circumstances. God’s promise was never that you would thrive because life was easy. God’s promise was that he would bring the strength, joy and peace you need in every situation so you would be able to thrive. God perfects his strength in your weakness and all the fruits of the Spirit are made possible to you, no matter what you are going through or how difficult life is.
God has a specific purpose for each and every day and he has created you to live your life to the fullest. He wants you to thrive through every day and every season and yes, that includes thriving even when you are in the middle of a difficult trial. Stop settling for less than what Jesus has already paid for. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, you should live in complete victory, thriving through each day, instead of just surviving through each day.
You are the only person who can prevent a bountiful life from manifesting so what decision are you going to make? Are you going to choose to barely survive or are you going to choose to thrive in all seasons?
”I have come that they might have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10
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Melissa
Posted at 14:52h, 15 DecemberYes! This is so good. I feel like I have been in a funk lately and the reminder that EACH day has a purpose is exactly what my heart needed to hear. Choosing joy!!!
Sharayah
Posted at 09:05h, 17 DecemberI think I too often subconsciously associate thriving with happiness and excitement. I can’t force myself to feel those things when I’m struggling. But I love how you showed that thriving and living abundantly is more about accepting the strength and peace that God has already given and allowing the Holy Spirit to continue to produce fruit through the dark times than it is about manufacturing a feeling.
Shannon Ketchum
Posted at 14:27h, 17 DecemberYes!! Thriving…this is what I’m choosing. Choosing to thrive, choosing to trust Him, choosing to have joy, choosing to believe in miracles and the impossible. Thanks for this.
Lauren
Posted at 16:33h, 17 DecemberI’m so grateful for abundant life in every season. What I’ve learned the past few years is that abundant life doesn’t look the same from season to season. Abundant life in the midst of grief and heartache is so different from abundant life in the midst of victory and rejoicing. But God is with us for both. I think that the holidays have a special way of bringing the grief and heartache to the surface- which means that not everyone’s “abundant life” might look the same. Some people are going to be blissfully enjoying the holidays, while others might be faced with the task of working through significant grief. So their abundant life could be very different and their approach to the holidays will differ greatly too.. What’s amazing is that regardless of the circumstance of the Holidays is that God is the same. His power and His love and His grace and His desire for us to live abundantly is the same.
Carrie Wilson
Posted at 22:48h, 17 DecemberThis is so convicting! I’ve been working on enjoying moments, the people I love, and finding joy in every season. Some days are harder than others, but Jesus came for us to have abundant life and surely that means more than just barely surviving each day.