Remember

How many times, how many times do I forget… forget how far I have come, how much I have been blessed with, how much growth has taken place. All of the things that are going well, all of the things that I do have to look forward to. Why is it that as humans we have such a short sided memory! Maybe it is just me, but something amazing could have happened earlier in the day and by the afternoon I have already forgotten about it. There is something sacred, life giving and restorative about remembering. Remembering where you came from, all of the things that you have accomplished, remembering that you are not in the same place that you used to be.

But today I am struggling, struggling with feeling left behind, with feeling like God must have forgot about me, feeling like I am still stuck in the same damn place I have been for the past few years… like he came in, turned my life upside down and here I am to pick up the pieces. Same job, same relationship status, close to the same financial situation… until I look back. I look back and see how he has protected me from what could have been a life altering situation, that he has blessed me with amazing people along this journey to help me navigate through this mess. That my business is in a totally different place than it was a few years ago.  A lot has changed, that I am not even close to the same person I was a few years ago, that I am choosing to press into the difficult, that I am dreaming bigger than I have in the past. That I am engaging in the scary, the unknown… that I am learning to just go with it. Rachael from a few years ago needed to have a plan at all times, needed to have all the answers, wouldn't ever let anyone see that she did not have it all together. That Rachael was okay for that moment in time and was just doing the best she could… but the Rach now, is so much more full of life. It isn’t easy, it isn’t always fun, but it is good! Maybe I am not where I want to be but thank the Lord I am not where I used to be. I am thankful for the ability to look back, to remember and be encouraged that I am doing okay just as I am. If you are feeling stuck, left behind or just downright discouraged look back… look back and acknowledge all of the good, acknowledge all of the progress, acknowledge how you are so much stronger than you thought! Let looking back be often, bring encouragement, inspire hope, a reminder that you might not be where you want to be but you sure as heck are not where you used to be.