To receive God’s best requires that we have to do things God’s way.  Being a stubborn person, this was a hard lesson for me to learn, but it was one in which I learned that through our failures, His love and forgiveness are unconditional.  I also learned that it is through our obedience that we open the door to His abundant blessings and it is when we submit to God’s authority over our lives that we see first-hand what the land of more than enough looks like.  When we choose to follow Him, He leads us to the land of blessings, a place where we shall not want.

In I Thess. 5:16-18, we read, “Be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  This scripture is very important because for us to be obedient, it says that God’s will for us is to remain joyful, even in our most difficult circumstances.  When we remain joyful, even when the sky seems to be falling, we are showing others that despite what is going on around us; our faith and trust are in God.  When it seems that all hope is lost, if we will remain joyful and turn to the Lord, He will blanket us with His supernatural peace, comfort, and strength allowing us to persevere where others would be hopelessly lost in despair.  When we are able to look past our problems and declare that despite what is going on, we believe that God has plan, even when we can’t see one, He will see you through.  He will guide you when you need wisdom, He will support you when you need help, and He will carry you when you can go no further on your own.

We cannot begin to understand why things happen in our lives; the moment we think we know, we are only fooling ourselves.  What we can do is make the most out of our circumstances.  What we have walked through is our testimony and God wastes no experience, no pain, and no tear.  His ways are so much higher than our own and His best is so much better than our best.  To receive His best, all we must do is remain joyful, prayerfully seek His will in our lives, and give thanks in all our circumstances.  We often fool ourselves into thinking that other people have it better and how much better our life would be if we could switch places with someone, but I heard a funny saying that sums this erroneous mentality up: “If the grass looks greener on the other side, it’s probably because they are living on a septic tank.”  Even when things looks great or when it seems someone has it all together; just remember no one’s best is better than God’s best.  We all have baggage and drama in our lives; the difference is we have Jesus Christ who abides in us.  He gives us the strength to walk through life and when we trust in Him, He will either fight our battles for us or through us.  All he asks of us is to remain joyful, be thankful, and to trust in Him.  I encourage you to take a step of faith and reach out to someone who is walking through a difficult circumstance; become a mentor to someone younger than you, speak life into someone’s life that needs a friend.  Remember, we were all lost at one time and as followers of Christ, we are all called to reach this lost and hurting world. To Him be the glory, now and forever!