Because of Him - An Easter Reflection

#BecauseofHim

Faith is not faith until it has been tried. My faith has been tested on countless occasions but having gone through these trials and experiences, I have every bit of faith in the world that Jesus Christ died for every single person on this earth and he sacrificed so much pain and sorrow so that we can have second chances.

There has been many many things that I have wanted in this life and worked very hard for and when they didn't come to be, my heart ached and I had moments of doubt wondering why I even try. Feeling all alone, discouraged and sometimes even forgotten. 

There has been relationships I tried to make work, sacrificing more than was spiritually or physically good for me, because I had absolutely every desire to show selfless love unto the Lord. I have competed in 9 different pageants and never walked away with the title I was seeking, hoping that was the mission that I had been called to do to serve the Lord.
I have reached out to others and gone out of my way to make people feel special, only to feel like I didn't fit in and would never feel apart of something.

Life is hard, and for each of us our trials are very different and very unique to our hearts. But these trials are real and God is aware of each and every single one of them. 

It is through the atonement of Jesus Christ that we can experience peace in our every day life, even through the trials we are facing. My faith has grown so strong and steady over the past year as I have practiced diligence in prayer, exercising faith by small and simple actions, by serving individuals one at a time and by coming to know what the atonement has to offer me. I have learned through my own experience that the atonement is SO REAL! It takes away fear, guilt, sorrow, loneliness, shame, agony, depression, and every other negative emotion you can fathom. 

Jesus Christ is my best friend. It has taken some time for me to truly get to know him but what a blessing it is to know that even if I was the only one on the planet, he would still be willing to come down and sacrifice and bleed and die just for me. That is how much he loves each and every single individual person, he is willing to do anything and everything for you to return to live with God again.

Because of him, I know peace and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.
Because of him, I have had the opportunity to start over and have been renewed.
Because of him, I can be with my future spouse and my family forever.
Because of him, I can overcome my weaknesses through his strength and atonement.
Because of him, I can draw on the powers of heaven when I need help.
Because of him, I am never alone through his unconditional love.
Because of him, my hope has been restored and my heart has been filled with mercy & grace.
Because of him, I can see things from a different perspective to know that this world is beautiful and I am here for purpose and this is not the end, but only the beginning to much better and brighter things.