“The world isn’t as it should be.” I’ve read that sentence in two Advent devotionals this year.

I understand that the world is not as God originally created it, the perfect garden. I thought about saying the world is not as God intended but then I was thinking He had to know that man was going to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and get kicked out of the garden. If God is sovereign, then He had to know this was how life was going to be.

When I believe that “the world is not how it should be,” I feel like something has gone wrong. I feel disappointed. I feel like I am missing something I am supposed to have.

If I trust and believe that “this is how it should be” because this is how it is, I am much happier.

When I accept this is how it is, instead of fighting against reality I am more apt to enjoy what is.

When I tell myself “Nothing has gone wrong,” and remember God is working for my good, I feel good and am more secure.

I choose to trust and believe God loves me. I choose to trust and believe God is in control. I like to think God is not surprised by how the story turned out or is turning out. He has a plan. When I rest trusting Him in this moment, right now, I know His peace, and hope, and joy.

God meets us in the present moment. The present moment is where we must choose to trust Him. We choose to believe that He is with us, helping us, as we rely on Him to guide us, and we make decisions based on His Truth.

The past is past. Don’t let what was, or what happened, what you did, or someone else did, rob you of right now. Whatever happened then can only hurt you now if you keep replaying it in your mind and allowing it to be in your present.

With time and intention, you can let go of your painful story. You can decide today to start telling yourself a new story. You can choose to stop defining yourself by the past and choose to agree with what God says about you. You are loved. You are enough. You are redeemed. You are forgiven. You have a hope and a future.

The future is coming but because we trust in God, we do not have to be afraid or worry. He is already in the future. He is with us now and will go with us into the future. He equips us for whatever we face. We have His Spirit and strength and power in us helping us moment by moment if we will rely on Him. We trust that He is working for our good in all things whatever the future holds.

As we exercise our faith muscle it becomes stronger. As we recognize God meeting our needs in the present, we more easily trust that He will meet our needs in the future.

Our lives are not going to be perfect. We are not going to be happy all the time. This is just part of life.

There is heartache and sadness, we experience the tension in how it could have been and what is. Without the hard stuff and the sad things and the challenges we would not know and appreciate how great the joys and successes are.

God made us resilient and strong and capable to handle our life.

We must practice allowing ourselves to feel our feelings about life’s big events and trust that they are all part of God’s plan for our life. God is using/will use all our life experiences to draw us unto Him and teach us more about His love if we allow it.

When I think “life isn’t as it should be,” I am so focused on what I don’t have that I miss what I actually do have.

Maybe “life is not as it should be” but I know I enjoy life way more when I accept “this is how it is,” “this is all part of it,” “nothing has gone wrong,” “this too shall pass,” “all shall be well eventually.”

We practice accepting what is. We practice trusting and believing that all shall be well. We practice believing that God is with us and equipping us for whatever we face. We practice trusting that He is in control. We practice being open to receive whatever He gives and release whatever He takes away. We practice grounding ourselves in the Truth that we are loved by The King of Kings!

I encourage you to practice accepting your life as is. I encourage you to look for the beauty in what is. I encourage you to believe that God is Sovereign, He is still in control, He has a plan, and He is victorious! I encourage you to look for the evidence of God’s goodness in your life! I hope and pray He surprises you!