I have been through a lot in my life. God has blessed me in that I have not had to go through anything traumatic, but I’ve had my share of ups and downs. However, I am grateful for it all; the good times and the bad. When I look back, I see the wonders of God’s work. I see the magnitude of His love and grace. He is truly an awesome God.

“For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe.” – Deuteronomy 10:17

            I can see how God has been by my side always. For those of you who do not know, I was born in South America. Where I was born, there was a bit of civil unrest between citizens and the government. My father was a member of the military at the time, so my mother gave birth to me in a military hospital. On the same day of my birth, a high ranking officer was being brought in for medical care. Hearing of this, some civilians decided to plant a bomb in the hospital and succeeded. What the damage was, I cannot say. All I do know is that God protected me and both of my parents when the bomb went off. I am grateful that even when I was a helpless baby, He protected me and my family.

“And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!” – 2 Timothy 4:18

            I have had to deal with so many personal demons and each time things seemed hopeless, God was there to pick me up. I remember a time when I honestly thought that no one would care if I disappeared off the face of the earth. I never had any suicidal thoughts, but I did go into a deep depressive state where my life just felt so empty. God came and showed me that I wasn’t alone. I have people in my life that care for me and more importantly, He loved me.

“For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” – Ephesians 3:14-19

            When things looked rough, He provided. When I was suffering from low self-esteem, He strengthened me. When my dad left, God showed me that He would never abandon me. When I was lacking understanding, He gave me wisdom. God has blessed me with so much that I am sure I’d be here for another 5 pages listing everything He’s done for me. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that I have such an amazing God.

“Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

            With everything that I’ve gone through, I’ve learned that God is always there. In the good times and the bad. I know it’s easy to get mad or to blame Him for the troubles we face. However, we can’t forget everything He as done for us. He is standing in the rain with us. He is right beside us in the fire. He is keeping us safe from the beasts that want to devour us. Don’t lose heart. Keep your eyes on Jesus. And, although it may be hard at times, be grateful for the life He has given you. As long as you keep your faith in Him, you will see how He will continue to work in your life every day.

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” – 2 Corinthians 12:9-10