At points in my life I have felt a yearning to grow more, these moments came when life has felt static for me. I knew I wanted more, I could be better, but just didn’t know how to get there.
A while back I had the feeling that I was growing, but not to the full potential God had for me. I came to a point where I realised I needed to prioritise how I spent my time, predominately between church, family and most of all with my friends.
It was really in 2014 I decided to put full focus on God, as I noticed my had attention shifted. Without even a moment to breathe I was either busy with church serving, with school or with my friends the whole time thinking “I can cope”.
For me the issue was never about my commitments in church and being over stretched, but more so in other areas of my life, specifically when I was with a particular group of friends. I had to be honest with myself and see that my growth was being stunted and for right now, we didn’t share the same desires, goals and objectives.
I think friendships challenge people to go beyond themselves and develop in certain areas of life. For the last couple of years I have had relationships that would challenge me to grow in certain areas, but not always the right ones. At one point I felt God say to me that it was time to let go of these friendships, move on and see me grow in to all God has for me.
I have also grown a lot since that moment. I’ve made steps into leadership and gained confidence, which I believe I could not have done if I hadn’t put my entire trust God. Proverbs 3:5-6 says: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
I feel like God has truly made my paths straight and I am uncompromisingly happy!
By Zoë Van der Heijden