I am standing in the greatest season of blessing of my life. God has allowed me to see Him move in absolutely astounding ways. He is affirmatively answering specific prayers left and right; I can barely wrap my brain around it. It’s humbling.

But every now and then I stand toe to toe with the fear of what lies ahead. Hardship. Pain. Loss. Illness (the ounce of worldly superstition that lives in my pinky toe is terrified to type this for fear of speeding the fulfillment of this truth).

I think it’s good to have a keen awareness of how God is blessing me, to constantly acknowledge how undeserving I am of His favor, to bless others out of my gratitude, and to maintain a healthy understanding of how this life process, this growth process works. God will allow pain into my life to sharpen me, to draw me into complete dependence and trust, to further purify me, and to render me more effective in ministry to others. That’s just the deal.

I know my God’s character well enough to build my life on His faithfulness and goodness, but often times knowledge doesn’t automatically change behavior. Much like the fact that people continue to smoke even though they are aware it causes cancer, someone as friendly with fear as I am still has to wrestle with this issue often.

Easy livin’ eventually leads to sloppy spirituality. I can’t remember where I read that, but it’s truth in my life. That’s scary to me, but I am seeking a healthy balance in my view of God’s blessings.

And I am praying regularly to be prepared for what lies ahead…