Preparation

"Come, let us return to the Lord! He has torn us in pieces; now he will heal us; now he will bandage our wounds." Hosea 6:1

This verse works with this one:
"And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them." Romans 8:28

Then also leads into this one:
"And I am sure the God, who began the good work withing you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus comes back again. Phil 1:6 (He's still working on me!)

God uses need in our lives for us to grow. We go through tough situations whether it is finances, relationships, loneliness, doubt, or health problems and he uses all these to bring our focus back to him. I have learned that anything I obtain on my own and put before God will eventually be taken away from me. With this loss comes deep regret, grief and pain but looking back it is during these times that I've had the most growth. Over the past few years, I've had times that I felt completely lost and lonely when I was put through various trials. These trials deeply hurt me but caused me to cry out to God for forgiveness and healing. I have learned in the absolutely hardest ways that neither God nor I will be satisfied or happy until he is first in my life. I failed in my marriage, I failed in my finances, I lost a very close friend, and I was treated wrong by an employer but God used all of these situations for my own growth. Lately he has been teaching me about keeping him first and also forgiveness of those who have hurt me. The lessons I have learned have changed the way I deal with people on an everyday basis and now I can see the necessity of everything I've gone through. I lost everything that I put before God, but it has been well worth it because I've gained spiritual freedom and peace which is absolutely priceless. I know that God continues to work on me daily and I am thankful that he never gives up on me instead he pushes me to be stronger.