Count It All Joy

     August 12, 2025 

When I was younger, I always wanted to do something great. I wanted to be a singer, an actor on a TV series, or simply a well-known person. I was always so obsessed with my future and what I would grow up to be, that I was too busy living for tomorrow instead of enjoying the moment I was in.

   During my senior year of high school, I decided to change the view I had on life. Ever since I could remember, I always dreamed of graduating high school--the first sign of becoming an adult and my life beginning for real. But now that the time was here, I couldn't believe it was actually happening. Of course, my senior year didn't exactly look like I always thought it would. If you know me, you know my dad is a pastor, which led me and my family to move to our current church during my junior year. Suddenly, the times I always dreamed about were gone, and instead of graduating with kids that I knew since preschool, I couldn't even name half of the people in my class. 

    We all have certain things or times that we dream about and have great, massive plans for. But the truth is, our life doesn't always go to plan. 

    And that's okay.

    This past year, I chose to focus on the verse "Count it all joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds" (James 1:2). Moving away from the town I grew up in wasn't easy by any means, but it certainly provided new opportunities. And instead of seeing these opportunities in a negative light or trying to imagine how my life would be if I wasn't living here, I chose to count it all as joy. 

    And of course, not every moment was joyful. I didn't always handle situations with grace, but in every situation I saw the Lord's hand over it. The people He surrounded me with, the new friends He gave me, and new even ministry opportunities. 

    When you change your view on things, it changes your whole attitude. Instead of being nervous before a Reflections performance, I was grateful to have the opportunity to share the stage with other talented people. Instead of complaining about homework from my college class, I was glad to have a professor who pushed us outside of our comfort zones. There were times that I was frustrated, sad, and even lonely at points. But I saw the Lord teaching me lessons throughout it all. Even when it came down to choosing a college. The college I had been telling everyone I was going to suddenly didn't seem like the right fit for me. 

    Proverbs 16:9 says "In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps." Because of this verse, I know that even if everything isn't going according to my plan, it's going according to the Lord's. 

    I am very much the type of person who likes to plan things out. I put all my events in my calendar, and write down all my due dates for class work. Honestly, sometimes it scares me that I don't know what my life is going to look like in 20 years, but it's also kind of exciting. I have friends who are going off to college, getting engaged, or staying back home to work. Everyone is going through different situations, and no one's walk is the same, but that's what makes each of us unique.

    Everyone is always in a different stage of life. Maybe you're retired, or moving back home to live with your parents. You might have kids starting school for the first time, or you might be graduating this year. For me, I'm learning what it's like to live on my own, away from my family. And while I don't know what I'll be doing in a year, I can rest easy knowing that it's all in the Lord's hands. No one has the same path as someone else. I tell people "When something isn't going my way, I know it's going the Lord's way", because even at the end of a long day, I count it all joy that I'm able to live a life serving our Creator. So, my friends, I encourage you all to count it all as joy.