Finish Free Devotional - Day 1 of 13

"Sure it's Been Hard, But..." 

Prayer 

Lord, thank you for who you are. Thank you that in the midst of the busyness in this season you are still present. Thank you for the way that you are always with us even in the times that we don't seek you like we should. I pray we can take time to remember all you have done for us and shown us as this year comes to an end and we can remember what this week means to us as Christians. You came to this earth to bring us your word and offer salvation through the miraculous birth of our Savior and I'm so thankful.

I love you Lord, thank you!

In your Son's name, Amen!

Verses

2 Corinthians 4:7-9 

Thoughts 

12 months. 12 months full of lot’s of blessing but also 12 months full of lot’s of challenges. We all have a story of 2015. We each have our victories and we all have the battles that feel more like losses. Although the story is different for all of us, there is one common denominator from me to you and the stranger next door. We’re all still here. We made it. Another year in the books and no matter what pressures we experienced we were not destroyed, no matter what confused us, hope is not lost, no matter what or who persecuted us we were not abandoned, and despite being struck down at times, we were not destroyed. And as you look back on your year and look forward to what’s to come take time to remember that God’s hand has been on you the entire time and His hand is surely on you now. Sure, times were hard but the victories far outweigh the struggle. Praise Him.

Questions

What were the biggest challenges of your year?

What were the greatest blessings of this year?

Looking back, where was the Lord protecting you when you weren’t aware of it?

Are you focusing more on the struggles or the victories?

Today's Challenge

Let’s end this year remembering the way we’ve overcome our challenges, not remembering the fact that we had challenges.