Today is a special milestone for me. This devotional marks the 1,500th piece I have written.

That number honestly humbles me. When I think back over the years, I realize writing has never just been about producing content. It has been worship. It has been obedience. It has been healing. It has been a way to process life with God and hopefully encourage others along the way. Some pieces were written with tears in my eyes. Some were written in seasons of joy. Some were written when I felt strong, and others were written when I was simply trying to hold on to hope myself.

But 1,500 pieces and 15 books later, I can say this with confidence: God has been faithful.

And in many ways, this milestone does not feel like an ending. It feels like a reminder that God is still writing. Not only on the page, but in my life.

I have recently started a Psychology (Ph.D.) – Theology program, and my prayer is that God will use this season to sharpen my skills as a counselor, strengthen my research and writing, and help me better serve people who are hurting, searching, healing, and growing. I have also committed to go on a mission trip to a country in Asia, where I will have the opportunity to help train pastors. My heart is to encourage and equip them, not only to care well for their flocks, but also to care for their own souls, their families, and their emotional health as they carry the weight of ministry.

I would deeply appreciate your prayers in this season to come. Pray for wisdom, endurance, provision, focus, humility, and open doors. And when it is time to begin my dissertation, I will let everyone know how you can be praying specifically.

I share all of that because it connects so deeply with today’s devotional. Sometimes, we are tempted to believe our best days are behind us. We look back at what God has done and wonder if we will ever see that kind of purpose, joy, momentum, or fruitfulness again.

But I am learning, again and again, that God is not finished.

Some thoughts feel so convincing because they show up when you are tired.

You look back on a season that was full of joy, purpose, or momentum, and you wonder if life will ever feel like that again. Maybe you hit a milestone, reached a goal, or lived through a chapter that felt rich and alive, and now everything feels quieter. Or maybe the last stretch has been marked by hardship, disappointment, or loss, and hope feels like something you used to have.

If that is where you are today, let me encourage you: your best days are not locked behind you. They are not a museum you visit with nostalgia and regret. If God woke you up this morning, it is because He has more for you. Your story is not finished. Your calling is not expired. Your future is not a leftover plan.

God is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, and everything in between. He does not just hold your past. He is already present in your next chapter.

The Lie That Says You Already Peaked

There is a quiet lie that many people carry, even faithful believers. It does not always show up as despair. Sometimes it shows up as resignation. It whispers, “That was it,” or “Those were the golden years,” or “I missed my window.” It convinces you that life has a ceiling, and you already brushed up against it, so now all you can do is manage decline.

That mindset does not match the nature of God.

God is not the God of rewind. He is the God who renews. He is not limited by your age, your timeline, your mistakes, your setbacks, or even your past successes. He is not intimidated by what did not work out, and He is not limited to what already did.

That is why milestones matter, but they are not monuments we stop at. They are reminders. They remind us that God has been faithful, and they invite us to trust that He will be faithful again.

For me, 1,500 written pieces is not a reason to look back and say, “That was it.” It is a reason to look forward and say, “Lord, what do You want to do next?”

When you belong to Jesus, your future is not driven by what you have already done. Your future is shaped by what He has promised.

God’s Nature Is Always Advancing

Proverbs 4:18 says, “The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.” (NIV)

Notice the direction. Brighter. Not dimmer.

That does not mean every season feels easy. It means God is moving you forward, even when the road is steep. It means your walk with Him is meant to deepen, not dry up. Your peace can grow. Your wisdom can grow. Your impact can grow. Your joy can grow.

The world romanticizes “the good old days.” God does not. He does not ask you to live backward. He invites you to live forward with Him.

Isaiah 43:19 says, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” (NIV)

God is not recycling your life. He is revealing Himself in fresh ways. He is not stuck in what used to be. He is already working in what will be.

And sometimes the “new thing” requires us to stretch.

Starting a Ph.D. program at this stage of life is stretching me. Preparing for ministry in another country is stretching me. Thinking about research, counseling, dissertation work, and training pastors is stretching me. But I also know this: comfort is not always the same thing as calling. Sometimes God invites us into deeper preparation because He is expanding the assignment.

The new thing may not always feel easy, but it can still be holy.

Don’t Let Delay Define You

Waiting seasons are dangerous if you interpret them the wrong way.

When answers take longer than you expected, you can start telling yourself a story that is not true. “Maybe God forgot.” “Maybe I missed it.” “Maybe it is not going to happen.” Delay can make you question your worth, your future, and even God’s goodness.

But delay is not denial.

Think about Joseph. Betrayed by his brothers. Sold. Falsely accused. Thrown into prison. Forgotten by the ones who promised to remember him. If Joseph had judged God’s faithfulness by the length of his hardship, he could have lost hope completely. Yet Scripture shows that God was with him, even in the pit, even in the prison.

And then, in one day, God changed everything. Joseph went from prison to palace. Not because Joseph had the power to force it, but because God had the power to finish what He started.

Some of the most sudden breakthroughs are built on long, hidden preparation.

That encourages me in this season. Research takes time. Counseling skills take time. Ministry preparation takes time. Healing takes time. Growth takes time. Even writing 1,500 pieces did not happen all at once. It happened one word, one prayer, one devotional, one act of obedience at a time.

You might feel like nothing is moving, but God is never idle. He is arranging details you cannot see. He is building endurance in you. He is protecting you from doors you were not ready to walk through yet. He is shaping your discernment so you will recognize His best when it arrives.

What feels like a pause to you can be part of His setup.

Preparation Precedes Promotion

David is another example that comforts the heart.

He was anointed king as a teenager, but he did not step into the throne right away. He spent years in fields tending sheep. He spent more years running for his life, dodging spears, hiding in caves, living as if the promise would never come true.

But those hidden years were not wasted years.

God was developing courage in David when no one was watching. God was forming integrity in David when no one was applauding. God was teaching David how to worship, how to repent, how to lead, how to depend on Him. By the time David wore the crown, the crown was not the main thing. David had already been shaped into someone who could carry responsibility without losing his soul.

That is one of my prayers for this next season. I do not just want God to open doors. I want Him to shape me into someone who can walk through them well. I do not just want more opportunity. I want more wisdom. I do not just want to help others heal. I want to keep allowing God to heal and form me too.

That is also one of the reasons I am excited about helping train pastors overseas. Pastors carry so much. They love, lead, preach, counsel, pray, visit, serve, and pour themselves out for others. But shepherds need care too. Those who care for the flock also need space to care for their own souls.

Ministry is not sustained by gifting alone. It is sustained by abiding in Jesus.

Do not despise the season you are in. If you feel unseen, that does not mean you are unused. If you feel overlooked, that does not mean you are forgotten.

The silence is not God’s absence. Often, it is His intentional work.

Live With Holy Expectation

Expectation is not denial. Expectation is faith with its eyes open.

It is waking up and saying, “God, I believe You are working, even if I cannot see the full picture yet.” It is choosing trust over cynicism. It is refusing to let disappointment become your personality. It is deciding that hope will have the final word.

When you live with holy expectation, you start noticing what you missed before.

You recognize opportunities you used to overlook. You become willing to start again. You pray with boldness instead of hesitation. You rest instead of rushing. You prepare instead of panicking.

Faith does not mean you pretend everything is fine. Faith means you believe God is faithful.

Try speaking this over your day for the next week:

“Father, thank You that my best is not behind me. I trust Your timing. I trust Your plan. I trust Your heart.”

That kind of daily confession does not manipulate God. It aligns you with truth. It lifts your focus from what you have lost to what God is building.

And that is where I find myself today. Grateful for what God has done. Humbled by the milestone. Stretched by what is ahead. A little overwhelmed, honestly, but also expectant. Because if God has been faithful through the first 1,500 pieces, He will be faithful in the next chapter too.

You Haven’t Seen Anything Yet

Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” (NIV)

God’s capacity is not limited to your current circumstances. He can do more than you ask, more than you imagine, and He can do it in ways you did not see coming. Not because you earned it, but because He is good and His power is at work within you.

Let this land deep in your spirit today:

You are not too old.
You are not too late.
You are not too far gone.
You are not disqualified by what you have been through.
You are not defined by your worst chapter.
You are not limited to your last season.

If you are still breathing, God is still writing. If you still have a pulse, you still have purpose. The best is not a memory you grieve. It is a promise you can live toward.

That does not mean tomorrow will be perfect. It means tomorrow is not pointless. It means your life is not in decline when God is involved. It means He can restore what was lost, redeem what was broken, and renew what has grown weary.

As I step into this next season of study, ministry, writing, counseling, research, and mission, I am holding on to that truth. God is still writing. And I believe He is still writing in your life too.

So keep believing. Keep walking. Keep praying. Keep showing up.

Your best is not behind you. With God, it is still ahead.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father,

Thank You that our stories are still unfolding, and Your plans for us are good. Thank You for every milestone that reminds us of Your faithfulness, and thank You for every new beginning that reminds us You are not finished.

When we are tempted to believe our best days are behind us, remind us that You are the God of new beginnings, fresh mercy, and renewed strength. Help us surrender the lie that we have already peaked, and teach us to trust You with what comes next.

Give us faith in the waiting, courage in the stretching, and humility in the preparation. Strengthen the places in us that have grown tired from disappointment. Heal what has been wounded. Renew what has become weary. Restore holy expectation in our hearts, not as hype, but as steady confidence in Your character.

Lord, I also ask for Your wisdom and grace in this next season of my life. Guide my studies, sharpen my mind, deepen my compassion, and use this Psychology and Theology program to make me more effective in serving others. Prepare the way for the mission trip ahead, bless the pastors who will be trained, and help them care well for their flocks while also caring for their own souls.

Teach all of us to see the new thing You are doing, even if it starts small. Prepare our hearts for the doors You will open, and give us courage to walk through them when You do.

We declare today that the best is not behind us. With You, there is still more ahead.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.