6 Lessons I learnt in 2018:

Happy New Year Ladies. So it’s the first day of the New Year and I have been reflecting on 2018. Looking back, it has been a year of stepping out of comfort zones, not just for me but for many others. It was also a year of allowing God to use me for His purpose. The year however came with many trials and as I look back these are some of the things I learnt:

1. Jesus Comes First.

With the busyness of life its easy to get distracted and not focus entirely on God. As I focused on my own goals and “living my best life,” I found that Jesus sometimes came second or even third. 2018 really taught me that Jesus needs to come first In everything and that He should be my main focus. As I decrease, God needs to increase.

2. The Importance of Joy.

Going into 2018 I had so many hopes and dreams for the year. Who knows it is a good thing to have your own personal hopes and dreams? What’s not good is allowing your own desires to become an idol. By the middle of January 2018 I began to feel depressed because things were not going the way I wanted them to. I kind of let the way I was feeling set the tone for the whole year. I started to realise that I could no longer entertain anything that may cause me to feel this way and began to focus on being content where God has me. I’ve also learnt to find joy even when I am going through struggles. The Bible says that we should count it all joy when we fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of our faith produces patience (James 1:2-4). The more I am in Gods presence the more joy I have.

3. The Importance of Gratitude.

During my state of discontentment I started to realise how ungrateful I was being. God had blessed me with a promotion at work, blog ideas and a new home, however my focus was everything that I had not achieved. God really taught me how to be grateful even in the little things and I found happiness in this.

4. Control Over My Thoughts.

Who knows that the mind is a battlefield? God however has given us the power and authority over the enemy. Last year I learnt that I do not have to entertain every thought that comes into my head, especially if it is something that could be detrimental to my salvation. This year I will be living that Second Corinthians 10:5 life, where I will be casting down imagines and everything that does not align with Gods word.

5. Trusting the Process.

I have learnt that the key is to trust in the process, which includes Gods timing. Even if I do not understand something or things are not looking how I want them to look, GOD KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING. Trusting in God brings security. He will never lead us astray, however will direct us where He wants us to be.

6. The Importance of Having Godly Relationships.

Having more Godly relationships has really been on my heart this year. It’s all good being around people that you can have fun with, however you really do need people around you that can keep you in check, that you are accountable to and people that you can learn things from. This is why the Bible says “He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed” (Proverbs 13:20).

Iron really does sharpen iron and the benefits of being around the right people are amazing.

Hope you found these lessons useful. My friendship blog will be coming soon as promised.

Stay Blessed and Encouraged.

Love Nkay XxX