Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can.

Genesis 15:5

Guest Blogger Candace Gray

Do you ever feel weighed down by the daily grind of life? Have you suffered some disappointment in the last year that caused you to lose hope? Perhaps you’re in a long season of waiting and not seeing any change.  Going through a hard season can make you lose vision and shrink your view of what’s possible. As you start this year, stir up your hope by remembering there are tremendous possibilities with God. 

Abraham found himself in a discouraging place. He wanted much more than what he saw in his life at the time.  He wanted a child and he had none; he wanted a home and he’d been uprooted from his home and told to go to an unknown place. Furthermore, God had promised to bless him with not just one child, but with numerous descendants and God had promised not just a home but a nation that would have its own land. Yet there was a big gap between what Abraham was experiencing and what God had promised. So, God told Abraham to “look up at the stars and count them if you can.” It was an encouragement to look beyond what he could see around him and understand that God has as many ways as there are stars to fulfill His promises.  The same is true for you and me. Looking up represents seeing the vast power of God and His ability to bring about amazing things in your life.  As you approach the new year, fix your gaze on Him. He is I AM (Exodus 3:14), meaning He is able to do more than you can ask or imagine.   

Don’t stop believing in God’s good plans for you.  Life is better when you focus on the wide sky of possibilities rather than the narrow view created by your disappointments. When you play small, there is no energy, no vision and no confidence to make bold moves. When you think and look toward the sky, there are infinite possibilities and a great and powerful God working for your good.  Even through adversity and delays, He’s growing you and preparing you to be blessed and to be a blessing. Turn your gaze from your disappointments to the sky and remember I AM. 

Questions for Reflection:

• What disappointments did you encounter last year?  Did they cause you to lose hope? 
• Where is your focus now – on you and your circumstances or on God? 

My guest blogger this month is Candace Gray. She is a seasoned leader with a track record of living a life of purpose and helping others to do the same. Candace is a Senior Director for Buckner Children and Family Services and a longtime member of Concord Church in Dallas. 

If you’d like to follow her full 21-day devotional series, go to www.candacegray.com 

Photo by Klemen Vrankar on Unsplash