It’s been a while since I’ve written one of these journey updates. The flow of these is pretty much just me taking some time to share about what’s been happening to me personally and what God has showed me through it all. It has been an insane ride. I got married, moved in with my amazing wife, got fired, wandered in a state of unknown, we decided to move, had a few panic attacks in there, and are on the job search as we move to Orlando, Florida.

Yeah, a lot has happened.

There has been a lot of unknowns that have forced my wife and I into continual seasons of transition. Nothing has stayed the same, we are in a constant mindset of “what’s next” and “how are we going to navigate this.” It has been great. Not easy, not a road with mixed emotions, but a great journey. In the midst of all the transition and change, God has been teaching us to have complete trust in him. We have many unknowns in the midst of the transition, but the one thing we can cling to, is that God has a bigger plan. Nothing we face will be too big for God to handle. The thing is about trust, it’s not easy. There have been a couple of things God has really taught me during all of this, and these are things that have continued to be true and lead me into a confidence of the many transitions.

Trust is a daily choice.

Danielle and I have been through a lot of change, and in every situation, we have had a choice. We could either get angry, letting our emotions take control of our lives, or we could choose to have trust. Trust is very much an action. If you’ve ever done any kind of team building, you have done the trust fall. The classic, “have trust that your team won’t let your hit slam on the ground,” scenario. You have to make the active choice to fall. Sure, you could stand in the place and say you trust your team, but until you actually make the choice to fall, you aren’t really trusting. The same is true in our walk with Christ. You could be very churchy and say, “I trust God with everything,” but until choose to make the leap, you’re simply lying to yourself. You have to face the fears that are in your life, finances, the future, your career, parenting, whatever it may be, and ask God to have complete control over that situation. Every morning, pray and ask God to give you that supernatural trust, because it won’t come naturally. Trust is a daily choice we must make.

God is bigger than you.

I used to laugh at the Israelites. Okay, that sounds mean, but what I mean is, I used to laugh at the choices they made. They were enslaved for years, set free, and were given incredible blessings even as pharaohs soldiers hunted them down. God said they would have to wander the desert, and they forgot all of those moments. They even lost sight of where God promised them into. I laughed at that, thinking to myself, “how could you experience so many miracles and still lose hope that God was leading you into something better?” Well, I get it now. There have been so many transitions for Danielle and I, and for me, it gets easy to lose sight of what God has done. Which then in turn makes me question his plan. Yes, I question God sometimes, and no it’s not a sin to do that (It makes for really great quiet times). The truth is, I wrestle with God, but in these wrestling matches, I know that God will always win.

My doubts and insecurities start to fade away when I remember where God has brought me from.

Time moves quickly and often causes us to forget. We get distracted by the fears in our way, we lose sight of the victories God handed us. I was an insecure kid in middle school that was given a community and confidence. I heard God pull my heart in the direction of ministry, to plant a church focused on reaching the next generation. I experienced the death of my friend, but saw how God uses people to comfort in times of great heartache. I watched my brother battle addiction and have victory by God’s power. I experienced the joy of marrying my best friend and begin walking through life with someone who will push me to be the best I can be. All of these things look distant, but when we remember God’s hand in our life, we begin to realize that God is bigger than what I perceive. God is leading you into something greater than you believe about yourself.

I love change. It gives me anxiety, sure, but change is always exciting. Change allows for new opportunities. Change creates a blank slate for you to create something beautiful. Change opens the door after wandering through the unknown. Change is only scary if you allow it to be. Danielle and I are walking through transitions, and I am so excited for what will come. We are continually trusting God in all things, even when it’s unknown and frightening, we are choosing to trust God.

-Joshua Thomas

 

About the Author: Joshua Thomas is a writer by day and superhero by night. When he’s not writing and crimefighting, you can find him reading a good book, sipping warm tea, taking pictures, or dreaming. The young writer doesn’t fully know what he’s doing, but is enjoying the journey of it all. You can tweet memes at him on Twitter @joshua_thomas__ or follow his hipster photos and Jack Kerouac musings on Instagram @joshua_thomas__