Before I begin this new post, I just want to apologize for my tardiness. I know that I usually post Monday and Friday mornings. However, I had a very busy weekend and as much as I tried to prepare, I was unable to finish on time. Better late than never.

This past weekend, I got to spend time with family and friends. I had a lot of fun and we all certainly made many memories as we celebrated the joining of two people. We took pictures, we danced, we ate, we sang. Needless to say…it was a long weekend. But I enjoyed it. My favorite part was being able to have a heart to heart conversation with my siblings.

I have mentioned before that I am the oldest of four. There is my brother Elijah, who was born after me. After him, my sister Jade was born. Lastly, came my sister Joanna. The four of us have always been really close. We have had our fights, like any normal siblings, but within five minutes we would be joking around again like it didn’t even happen.

My siblings are some of the most amazing people I know. They are all loving, kind, understanding, strong, smart and just overall amazing people. As I have watched each of them grow, I have grown more and more proud of them as time goes by. Each of us has had our own unique struggles and we each have overcome them. One thing that we each struggle with is being discouraged.

When one becomes discouraged, they lose their confidence and enthusiasm. This can happen for a number of reasons. You don’t get what you want. You plan things out in your head and things don’t turn out the way you wanted them to. You put so much hope in someone or something and they don’t come through for you. However, I think one of the most common discouragements in when we set our hopes so high and things end up falling short of what we expected. We put so much effort in and we either see no results or very little results come from our work.

It is very easy for one to get discouraged. The faith we once had seems to slip away from us and we lose hope. However, we shouldn’t lose hope. You see, we forget that everything goes according to His plan. God’s plan and timing are perfect. We need to wait on Him and then we will see His plan unfold before our eyes.

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” – Ecclesiastes 3:11

As I mentioned in my last post, we are not alone in this. God is by our side and when we keep our faith in Him, we will do amazing things in His name. It does happen though, that sometimes we lose hope. We keep trying and trying but can’t help but feel like all the work is for nothing.

My siblings and I have been struggling with this in our own lives. As we spoke through the night this past weekend, we each realized how hard it can be at times. As the oldest sister, I did my best to console them and to keep their spirits high. Funny thing is, they did the same for me in return.

It has been a little over a month now since I started this blog. I work really hard and always pray that the work that I do isn’t in vain. I don’t really know if my words ever reach anyone. As I told my siblings, I always pray the same thing. I pray that I at least reach one person. If at least one person out there is inspired or even uplifted by anything I say, I know that my work isn’t in vain.

Little did I know that my sister Jade would be telling me that my words touched her. That something that I had said inspired her to keep going. Even as I write this, I am brought to tears knowing that God is using me. That even though I may not know it or even see it, that His plan is in full effect and I have the opportunity to take part in it. We just need to be patient and believe that His plan is in motion.

“Certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me!” – Psalm 66:19-20

So, I encourage you not to be discouraged. Maybe you are going through a hard time right now or just wondering if all your work is for nothing. Know that God hears you and is with you always. All your hard work is not in vain. Know that His word does not come back to Him empty and that you were given the opportunity to take part in His amazing plan.

“So shall My word be that goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” – Proverbs 55:11