Note from Team LO: We are SO excited to bring you this month’s post from our LO Fam member, Alena Blaszczak! If you want to be a part of this incredible community, sign up to be notified once the doors open back up!

As a little girl, my father would take me on walks throughout our farm. We have over 100 acres of land, so quite a bit of exploring happened during our time together. One of my favorite memories as a little girl was when he took me on a “detour” to get up the hill to the other side of the farm. There’s a nice, easy path to get to the top–no ragged weeds or oddly shaped trees to get in our way. Our pathway was already carved out of us, but one day he took me on this detour. The “detour” way required me to sweat. I got scratched by thorns, scared by snakes. I used muscles I haven’t used in a while. I asked my dad when we were about half-way up “Why did you take me this way? Why couldn’t we take our normal route? This is hard!”

He encouraged me to keep going and would explain to me why we went this way when we got up the hill. My father had never steered me wrong, so I trusted him through this process. We finally reached the top. There we saw a breath-taking, beautiful view. The different, vibrant colors of the leaves were falling off the trees with ease. There seemed to be an endless row of corn fields and we felt the chill-breeze of fall air. Squirrels were running up and down trees and birds soared effortless through the air. The most beautiful view of all was the extravagantly painted sky, given to us by our heavenly Father. A spectacular mixture of red, yellow, orange and pink, all combined together for this beautiful masterpiece.

After taking all this in, my dad was smiling bigger than I’ve ever seen him smile before. I think he even chuckled a little bit at the look on my face when we reached the top. I was a little agitated at this point because I felt like I just gone through a jungle. I asked him again, “Why would you take me this way? There was nothing wrong with our regular path.”

He answered, “Sometimes life isn’t always going to be easy. Sometimes you’re going to have to take the harder path in order to get to where you need to go. It won’t be easy. There will be obstacles in your way, but you CAN get to the top and achieve all your dreams.”

1 Peter 5:10 (ESV) says “And After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen and establish you.”

The Bible tells us that we will go through trials and tribulations (James 1:2-8), that we will go through difficult times. But we need to take heart and know that Jesus has already gone through these difficult times. He has already won these battles. We are given hope through Jesus that even though there will be days of suffering during our lives, the God of all grace, who knows us by name, will restore us. He will heal us. He will comfort us and give us peace through everything.

Sisters, how many times do we want to take the “easy path” to get our answers? How many times have we asked God, “Just please take this person away?” “Take me out of this situation!” “Bless me with the job I deserve!” “Please decide which career path I should take.”

In our generation, many of us are dealing with depression and anxiety. We are dealing with generational issues, past hurts, and fear. We don’t want to take that hard path because we’ve already dealt with enough pain, confusion and heartache. We don’t want to be hurt again. We are afraid to take that chance on doing something that “might” cause us pain. Trust me. I’ve been there! However, even Jesus’ path wasn’t easy! He made hard decisions, He experienced pain. He even asked His Father “Why?” (Matthew 26:39). Take heart friends, and trust in our loving God that He will guide you through any hardship and He WILL bring you to the top.

Romans 8:18 says “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

I want to encourage you today, even if your earthly Father wasn’t the greatest example, you can do everything you’ve ever dreamed of doing because you have a heavenly Father who LOVES you more than you could ever imagine. He BELIEVES in you, He CARES for you, and He knows your potential. He has given you amazing gifts that will touch so many lives. So don’t be afraid to take that hard path to the top. God will reward you in so many ways. He sees your hard work, He sees what you’re going through and He knows how hard that is. Your actions don’t go unnoticed (Hebrews 6:10).

At a young age, my father taught me a valuable lesson that would forever hold a special place in my heart. We have hard decisions to make about our careers, our relationships and much more. But with God’s help and guidance, we are able to achieve anything we put our heart and soul into! We are able to complete the race because OUR God is powerful and strong. He WILL guide us out of temptation, struggles, addiction, and lead us into freedom!

2 Corinthians 3:17

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

I’m not sure my dad realized it back then, but he was demonstrating to me how my heavenly Father is towards me. My father guided me through the woods safe, unharmed and protected. He knew the way to go and lead me to the top with ease and I trusted him wholeheartedly! Our God is just that: safe, protective, loving, kind, thoughtful and intentional! Put your trust in Jesus today, give Him your life and let go! He loves you always and will never lead you astray!

“I waited patiently for the Lord to help me,

and He turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the pit of despair,

Out of the mud and the mire.

He set my feet on solid ground

And steadied me as I walked along.

He has given me a new song to sing,

A hymn of praise to our God.

Many will see what He has done and be amazed.
They will put their trust in the Lord.”

Psalms 40:1-3 (NLT)

Alena Blaszczak is a Physical Therapist Assistant who recently graduated from California University of Pennsylvania. Alena is from a small town outside of Pittsburgh, PA. Some activities she enjoys doing include playing sports, exercising, hiking, traveling and baking! Alena believes helping people in anyway she can is the greatest way she can represent Jesus. Her family, friends and boyfriend mean the world to her!