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Lately, I’ve been thinking about my teen years. This June signifies twenty years since my high school graduation. 20 years! That sounds like such a long time but it has felt much shorter. Thinking back to that time brings back many memories of emotional upheaval, dramatic mood swings and a very small worldview. Through it all, my child-like faith kept its hope placed in Christ.

Recently, I returned from a vacation in Colorado. I have visited the Rocky Mountains a number of times in the past but only in Canada. Seeing them from south of the border gave a whole new perspective of them. Our rental car was filled with exclamations and wonder at every curve as we drove through the majestic landscape. My thoughts could not help but wander to the Creator of the amazing views. Romans 1:20 says, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” How awesome to be able to look at creation and get a glimpse of the magnificence of our God!

This song, Never See the End by Amanda Cook, speaks to that truth. There is no escaping from the love of God. In our finite minds, we believe that there must be a way to end His love for us. If we can do something to end the love given to us by another person, we must be able to end the love God feels for us. Love seems to be a passing emotion for humanity, so to comprehend a truly unconditional love is almost beyond our grasp. It is one of those miraculous truths that we simply need to accept by faith.

This song, The Secret Place by Phil Wickham, is one of my favourites off of his new album, Children of God. How timely that his new album was released during the same week as my focused study on prayer! As I listened to the words of the song I came to realize that I don’t often passionately desire to spend time in deep communion with my Saviour.

As I reflect upon my life of being a Christ-follower, I can see the steady hand of God upon me. Even when I strayed, He only let me go so far before bringing me back to Himself. He allowed me to go on journeys that brought me closer to Him. He allowed me to go through struggles that made me so angry that I couldn’t believe that I still believed in Him. He gave me joy and sorrow. He convicted and cleansed. He brought me to my knees in utter submission to His sovereignty.

We have the ability to overcome when we focus on our faith in Christ, grow in our relationship with Him, and rely on Him in all the circumstances of our lives. When life runs smoothly, it is easy to accept our triumphs as our own because we didn’t have to work very hard at them. When we’re hit with a difficult situation (and finally stop trying to fix it on our own), we realize that we need supernatural help to find our way through the murkiness.

This song, Ever Be by Bethel Music, moves me every time I hear it. I am overcome time and again by the picture of forgiveness and being made clean by our Saviour in the lyrics of this song.

There are three pictures of scripture that come to mind when I reflect on my formative years. Each scripture taught me something and played a part in bringing me to be the person I am today. This song, My Revival, has reminded me of this journey.

There was a time in my youth when I was concerned with the social repercussions I would experience if I mentioned the name of Jesus. People knew I was a Christian but speaking about Jesus was not necessarily part of my daily talk. In my early young adult years, after completing a study on the names of God, I became even more concerned with uttering the name of Jesus for fear I would use His name incorrectly.

The empty grave. Oh, the hope that we can find in the promise of those words. Our Saviour, Jesus Christ, sacrificed Himself on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. And, amazingly, rose from the dead! Our sins are forgiven. Our God is alive. We have so much to be thankful for this Easter season.