Dying to Self

I haven't written much here.  Nothing feels right to write, so I haven't written.

This has been a season of being stretched and grown.  I know that God is in it, and I continue to lean in -- but each night as I go to bed, I feel stretched, I feel tired, and I feel relief that I've made it through another day.  God is teaching Me that He is growing me and expanding my capacity -- but that is happening through working really hard, feeling overwhelmed at times, and dealing with tough situations at work, at home, and in my friendships.  My season right now feels a lot like what Paul talks about in 2 Corinthians 4:8.

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.

Yet I see God at work.  I know that He is preparing me for what lies ahead -- whatever that is.  I know that His plan is greater, and I choose to trust Him in that.  I choose to believe that every challenge, every frustration, every tough day is making me just a little bit more like Jesus.  I am choosing to die to myself daily so that I can be more like Him.  I don't do it perfectly, but everyday I'm getting just a little bit better at it and everyday it is becoming just a little bit easier.