Grateful Living
Grateful Living
By Johanna Williams
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because He cares for you.’ – 1 Peter 5: 6-7
It would be impossible to describe the breadth and depth of all that has grown in my relationship with God over the past year, but I can sum it up with two words: ‘surrender’ and ‘tenderness’.
2024 was a rollercoaster of a year for me, with lots of difficult trials to begin with, and an abundance of comfort and provision from God through the trials. It started with a sudden onset of very poor health with some worrying possible diagnoses (which, praise God, has now completely healed!), followed by the sad news of a divorce in my immediate family back in Wales, and a devastating departure from a career that I loved and had hoped to enjoy for many decades to come.
After trying to push through my pain and solve these situations for months, feeling like I was being progressively demolished by everything, I cried out to God. I said, ‘This is too much for me. I cannot carry it anymore, so I surrender it all to you.’ Nothing immediately changed, but I started to explore the theme of surrender and contentment in the Lord over the following months and practiced casting my cares onto him. I listened to many sermons and found Alistair Begg’s sermon ‘The Secret of Contentment’ particularly useful. Slowly, as I began to release control of my problems and truly submit it all to God, my heart and soul started to heal.
If ‘surrender’ is the best way to summarise my part of the dance this year, ‘tenderness’ would most accurately describe God’s response. I am more aware of His grace and mercy than ever before. Sins that I struggled with for a long time have fallen away, and I am slowly learning that I do not need to do something ‘big’ to make Him happy; just serve Him faithfully in the little things every day. He gave me deep comfort through His word and presence and the loving family He has placed me with in Hervey Bay. God has provided me with incredible friends, who love me like their own family, and have comforted and encouraged me tirelessly through many tears and anxieties.
Ultimately, I have discovered that actively humbling myself to release control of my life and submit my circumstances to Him, and learning to fully cast all my cares on Him (without neglecting hard work and responsible living) allows Him to show me tenderness and comfort and offer provision that is far more abundant and wiser than anything I could provide for myself. This has lifted a crushing weight from my shoulders and has given me peace and comfort to anchor me through all the uncertainties of life.
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because He cares for you.’ – 1 Peter 5: 6-7
It would be impossible to describe the breadth and depth of all that has grown in my relationship with God over the past year, but I can sum it up with two words: ‘surrender’ and ‘tenderness’.
2024 was a rollercoaster of a year for me, with lots of difficult trials to begin with, and an abundance of comfort and provision from God through the trials. It started with a sudden onset of very poor health with some worrying possible diagnoses (which, praise God, has now completely healed!), followed by the sad news of a divorce in my immediate family back in Wales, and a devastating departure from a career that I loved and had hoped to enjoy for many decades to come.
After trying to push through my pain and solve these situations for months, feeling like I was being progressively demolished by everything, I cried out to God. I said, ‘This is too much for me. I cannot carry it anymore, so I surrender it all to you.’ Nothing immediately changed, but I started to explore the theme of surrender and contentment in the Lord over the following months and practiced casting my cares onto him. I listened to many sermons and found Alistair Begg’s sermon ‘The Secret of Contentment’ particularly useful. Slowly, as I began to release control of my problems and truly submit it all to God, my heart and soul started to heal.
If ‘surrender’ is the best way to summarise my part of the dance this year, ‘tenderness’ would most accurately describe God’s response. I am more aware of His grace and mercy than ever before. Sins that I struggled with for a long time have fallen away, and I am slowly learning that I do not need to do something ‘big’ to make Him happy; just serve Him faithfully in the little things every day. He gave me deep comfort through His word and presence and the loving family He has placed me with in Hervey Bay. God has provided me with incredible friends, who love me like their own family, and have comforted and encouraged me tirelessly through many tears and anxieties.
Ultimately, I have discovered that actively humbling myself to release control of my life and submit my circumstances to Him, and learning to fully cast all my cares on Him (without neglecting hard work and responsible living) allows Him to show me tenderness and comfort and offer provision that is far more abundant and wiser than anything I could provide for myself. This has lifted a crushing weight from my shoulders and has given me peace and comfort to anchor me through all the uncertainties of life.
Posted in Grateful Living