“Feel swallowed up by life’s grievances? Don’t let that feeling win. Let God fight your battles!”

By Misty Strieff Prine

                “I wonder how many whales swallowed me up before I finally said, “God is God and I might as well do things His way.” – Joyce Meyer

                Oh, my goodness gracious alive! When I come across something that I love so much, I simply can't type what's on my heart and what comes to my mind fast enough. I love the point this quote brings to the table. How about you? How many whales have swallowed you up in the past before you finally realized that your way wasn't the right way? How long did it take you to realize that God's way was ALWAYS the right way from the beginning. I don't know about you, but I can be kind of strong-willed sometimes. We tend to think we know what's best for us, we act all big and bad and bullet proof and that is usually when we end up getting swallowed by the "whale" of grief, defeat and brokenness. Sometimes we repeat that mindset repeatedly, sometimes getting swallowed up by tons of whales, all before we surrender to the Lord and say, "Here I am Lord. I've tried doing things on my own but fail miserably. I'm sorry, Lord. Will you forgive me? Please show me how to do this life your way now."

I think we all can learn a lot from Jonah and how He surrendered to God when he literally had no other way to turn. God was His only saving grace and He is our own as well. It's sad that we so often have to reach the lowest part of our lives before we turn to God for our answers, when instead, it should be the very first thing we do. It's not too late you know? The truth is this. God IS the only way, our ONLY saving grace and do you know what is so amazing about that?? Even though we reject Him so many times and try doing things on our own, He never gives up on us and patiently waits on us to realize we need Him. He never leaves His people. He remains faithful and loves us unconditionally. Don't get swallowed up by any more whales my friend. The Lord is our rock and our shield...our SAVING GRACE.

Friends, I pray that if you find yourself in the "belly of the whale" today, you will remember that God is with you...even in your darkest hour. He's waiting on you to realize just how much you need Him. God is God and no amount of "bad days", bad circumstances, and bad decisions will ever lessen His power to conquer those things in your life.

**For daily devotionals, you can follow me on Facebook at The Upward Way or on Instagram at the_upward_way.