Have you ever sat down at the end of the day, or even went to relax at the end of the week and thought there seemed to be a running theme? Maybe a few things happened that just seemed to be connected or maybe some things just came together for you. Sometimes our lives just seem to reflect themes, and, to me, that is when God is speaking to us.

As I reflected on how this week has gone, I realized I am coming up on my final week of the challenge itself.

How did it go?

Small changes and celebrating the small positives have been my goal this week. As with most things, though, that’s easier said than done. In the moments when it’s hard to be positive, I reminded myself to be in the moment.

No, that does not mean I chose to be negative in that moment. What I mean is I chose to remove myself from the immediate negativity I was experiencing and think about how I could use that moment “for good.” I chose to think about what I could learn from the experience.

Surprisingly, that helped.

I had some small sense of relief this week, too, knowing that I have the power to change my environment. Just that realization helped me to feel empowered, and it encouraged me to take action when I can.

I encountered a quote this week as well: “God will sometimes wreck your plans when He sees that your plans are about to wreck you.” It hit me pretty hard, and it’s something I’ve been very conscious of since.

What did I learn?

For me, God works most especially when I am not looking. I don’t mean that I don’t search for Him, though I may not always be the best at doing so (who is, though?). I mean when I stop focusing so much on what I feel is wrong, on the pain, on my guilt, on my own struggle is when I see Him the most.

And just that knowledge reminded me that it’s okay to be in the moment. What matters is what you make of that moment. Do I choose to speak to Him? Or do I choose to glorify myself? (Hint: I want the former.)

God will also allow us to feel pain in that moment to remind us to turn to Him. This week I viewed that as His reminder to me that actions have consequences, but that He can turn them around. I didn’t listen when He tried to warn me my plans would wreck me, so He is allowing me to see and feel wreckage as a loving reminder that He is in control.

Clearly, the easiest part of my positivity challenge is believing in a higher power, as the inspiration behind my challenge recommended we do. What is interesting, though, is that is something I have learned. I thought it would be much more difficult for me to have faith. In fact, it’s the reverse for me.

And maybe that’s because I don’t have anywhere else to go.

I encourage you to try to find the good in every moment, see what you can learn from it and how you can use it. If something doesn’t feel right, trust that instinct. At the same time, if you do it anyway, don’t let the guilt eat you. Instead, use it to learn for the next time; apologize if you need to, but always remind yourself that now you know better and you can move on.

No, life is not always going to be positive. It will sometimes be difficult to find the positive in every moment, especially when you just want to break down or yell or cry or be angry. Use those feelings to learn about yourself. Sometimes that is the most positive thing we can do.