“Step out in faith.”

Easier said than done–in the moment. Go ahead, close your eyes. Think about a time or two where you were caught between a rock and a hard place, and you (as Robert Frost would say) too the road less travelled. Did it make all the difference? (To all my R. Frost lovers, see what I did there?)

In all seriousness, look at your life. Your hardest decisions made. As Downs points out in 100 Days to Brave, you probably didn’t think those moments were moments of bravery when you encountered them, but looking back now, makes sense. Right? And guess what, you lived! Maybe it was hard. Possibly the hardest season of life you ever went through, maybe you’re in the middle of it now. Keep going. God built you for this. You’re prepared, even when it doesn’t feel like it.

“Whether you turn to the right it to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” -Isaiah 30:21

Walk in it. Follow the way. Trust in the strengths you were given.

Life is a series of decisions. Sometimes, we don’t get to decide every move all at once. Do the best you can do. Day after day after day, do the next thing, take the next step, solve the next problem. One. At. A. Time. Walk in it.

For a while now, my heart has been called to the mountains. It was a literal: the mountains are calling and I must go, moment. BUT, I didn’t. I was scared. I still am. I am terrified of the what ifs and the unknown. So, I ran. To the ocean. To the COMPLETE OPPOSITE direction.

But step by step I am making my way back. Back to a me who is brave enough to say YES GOD! LEAD ME. Visiting the mountains and reminiscing on my moments in the wilderness have to do for now. I am missing out on what could’ve been the time of my life, my calling, because of fear.

Don’t get me wrong, I am trying daily to make the best of each moment. It took a lot for me, a homebody, who has never lived by herself, to just pick up and move 700 miles away, even if it was with her husband. Being away from my family sucks, and it’s hard, but worth it. Each day, I grow in myself, discovering who I am, and who God made me to be.

So, when God calls: answer. Step out in faith. You were made to be brave.

“You are braver than you know.” -Annie F. Downs