Lessons in Storms

Journal Entry: Chapter 1, January

A Fresh Start, Whatever It Looks Like

It’s 2024, and maybe you’ve started the year with a bang! Maybe it started slow for you. Maybe entry to 2024 was not what you expected – it was rough and rocky. I get it. We all had different starts; this is life. Different starts don’t mean it was a bad start. It just means it was different. We all have our own unique paths, and just because yours started differently doesn’t mean it’s off track.

Shifting Your Perspective: From Weather to Teacher

One of the biggest traps we fall into is judging our progress based on how things feel in the moment. Maybe you’ve made this mistake? Do you judge your journey based on how your reality looks? Meaning that if your day is up, then you’re on top of the world, and if your day is down, then you’re down as well. Is this your predicament? Well, I want us to change this because you have been engineered to navigate any weather and storm. Did you know this?

Storms as Teachers: Learning from Life’s Challenges

Now, you might be saying, “Sheilla, this storm feels like a tidal wave, and I’m barely keeping my head above water! I have tried everything, but I am failing.” First of all, your saying that you’ve tried “everything” is faulty and extreme. How could you possibly have tried everything?

I have a question for you on this: Are you yelling at the teacher, or are you listening to the teacher? Let me expand…

If life is a type of teacher, how do you think it will teach or talk to you? Can waves be a type of teacher? Can storms be a type of teacher? Of course, they can, and they are. If you read Psalm 18, you’ll see that clouds, hailstorms, storms, darkness, and similar elements bow at the presence of The Lord. If these fear the Lord, then we can say that what you’re afraid of is actually afraid of you – because of the one inside of you.

Remember, You’re Not Alone

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)

I love the verse above because it centers me and reminds me to focus on the one that’s bigger than the storm. It’s a beautiful reminder that we’re not in this alone. We have a guiding force, a constant presence that’s bigger than any storm we face. There will be moments of doubt, weakness, and uncertainty. That’s normal. The Bible even tells us, “With men, this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). You don’t have to have all the answers. You weren’t engineered that way. You’re not supposed to have all the answers, but you are connected to the One who does.

Fear Not the Teacher: Recognizing Your Strength

Could you be scared of the one that is trying to teach you?

Most of us are until we realize that we’ve been walking next to this storm for many years, and it STILL hasn’t taken us out. Do you know why it hasn’t? It’s because it was never intended to take you out. Perception is everything, and if you want to win in life, you have to see yourself as a winner. When you see yourself as a victor, you start living like one.

I don’t know what this year holds, but I do know this: it’s an opportunity for us to let go, to trust, and to find our true strength. Let’s make 2024 the year we finally embrace the journey, not just the destination.

Take a deep breath… I’m cheering you on in this year of rest (yes, you read that right, REST!). Welcome to 2024, a year of leaning into faith and finding strength in the storms.

Pain has a purpose

May 8, 20200 24

Remember, you are not alone. We’re all in this together.

Here’s to new beginnings, unexpected lessons, and the presence of God guiding us through it all.

I’m cheering you on!

Verses that we are standing on this year:

Exodus 33:14: “And He said, ‘My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest.'”
Matthew 11:28-30: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

Rest Definition