I didn’t grow up in a family where church every Sunday was a must. We didn’t pray over every meal or share our favorite Bible verses on a regular basis. My faith and religion have never been forced onto me by my family, and for that I am grateful. Don’t get me wrong, my family and I are very strong in our faith and we definitely believe that God is the reason for all things. No if's, and's, or but's, about it. Ultimately I am thankful for the way my family goes about our beliefs and for the fact that religion was never shoved down my throat. I am very content with how strongly God has influenced me and made himself present in my life.

Along with that, I am a firm believer in the idea that God has a plan for every single one of us and he works in the most mysterious ways. Our God can move mountains; he can make our darkest of days bright again; Our God has the ability to do the unimaginable. As I've gotten older, the more I've witnessed first-hand all of the ups and downs that life has to offer. There have been some days where I didn’t think things could get worse and those would be the days I started to question God and his motives. I would ask, “Why me?” or “What did I do to deserve this?”

Looking back, I strongly believe that questioning God and his plans is one of the biggest mistakes I could ever make. God has a plan much greater than our own. He is strategic and knows what he is doing, there is no doubt about that. He removes, replaces, or adds people/things into our lives every single day for a reason. Whether things seem to be going great or downhill, I have to constantly remind myself that everything really happens for a reason.

I have learned for myself that my problems aren’t really problems at all, but obstacles God chose to put in front of me so I could overcome them. The only thing we can do is trust in Him and what he is doing in our lives because he knows what is best for us. His love for us is so strong and everlasting, he wouldn’t lead us in the wrong direction. One thing I have come to realize over some time is that you can't worry too much. God does everything for a reason and he’s got us, no matter what.