There is no doubt in my mind that life is a journey. Sometimes the journey takes us to wonderful, beautiful places, and other times we tread on ground that is rocky and full of pitfalls. Occasionally we are blessed to meet some of the most awesome people in the world, and other times we meet people who make us question how bad a human can get. It is on this adventure called life that we often question who we are and what our purpose is.

I feel like I have been on a thousand journeys during this life, with twists and turns where I least expect them. Rarely has the path been smooth and easy.  And when it is, I find myself suspiciously viewing the road ahead just waiting for the next obstacle to leap out at me.  Frequently, I question God as to what my true purpose is. Why is it that I am here? What is it that I need to accomplish?

Sometimes, God surprisingly answers back and lets me know without a doubt what He is asking of me. But more often than not, He is silent (or is it that I am not listening?).  He hasn’t come down to hit me over the head with the obvious answers.  He doesn’t give me a tablet written in stone with all of the answers I want or need.

On this journey of life, I frequently find myself doubting my worth, questioning my decisions, and wondering what is the point of  it all. It is in those times of doubt that I have grown the most.  I have learned that I am stronger than I think and I can survive the darkness and live to see the light. During my darkest hours, God gave me the reassurance of his love and His providence for my life–even when I did not always recognize it in front of me.

If age has taught me anything, it has taught me that you are never finished learning and growing. God stretches me out of my comfort zone on many occasions.  He continually challenges me to new heights in learning to trust him.  He reminds me that this journey we call life is never static,  but always changing. So the best I can do is take one step forward at a time, trusting that I will have a heart to love, a hope to cling to, and a belief in God who always wants the best for me.

The wonderful thing about the journey is that no one will ever have the same journey that you have.  It is uniquely yours–all of it–both the good and the bad.  How will you live your journey? How will you take the good and the bad and use it in your journey to the future?  Each day we take a step into a new part of our journey.

I cannot help but think that someday my journey here will be over and a new one will be just beginning with God.

What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you’ll have it all—life healed and whole. – I Peter 1:3-5 (The Message)