At the beginning of the year, I prayed to God and asked Him to make this year one of extreme growth for me. I wanted to be surrounded by peace and love, and I knew I couldn't do that without God's help.

Since then, I have truly learned how God actually works in our lives, because I began to find myself in some of the toughest situations of my life. It seemed like I was surrounded by complete chaos, but those situations truly did make me stronger in the end.

The truth is, God doesn't give us exactly what we ask for. That would be too easy. Instead, He surrounds us with situations that will allow us to seek out what we need on our own. He guides us and walks alongside us, but He can't do all of the work for us.

For example, if we are looking for patience, He won't just give it to us, He will put us in situations that will allow us to exercise patience on our own. Likewise, if we are looking for growth, he will put us in situations that will strengthen us. This way, we are active in our mission to find what we are looking for.

So, when I asked God for growth, my whole world seemed to collapse for a little while. He started to take away those people that would hinder my journey and began to surround me with new ones that would support and love me the way that I needed to be.

It was tough at first, but I can already say, only halfway through the year, that it's been worth it. All of my struggles and time spent questioning God have been exactly what He needed from me to help give me the strength I was in search of. It may have been tough, but I know that those experiences were exactly what I needed to grow.