Light Shine Bright: Standing Strong
By Hannah Hogner
Have you ever felt hopeless, not confident just flat out struggling with life? If I was to ask this in a room full of girls, a majority, if not all, would raise their hands. It’s something we all struggle with at some point in our lives, this hopeless feeling or feeling less than. These feelings aren’t fun and most importantly are not from God. Honestly, I know this because I have been there probably more than I should have been, but hey, we are all human. I tried to deal with my problems in secret or tried to find instant gratification by cutting my hair or changing my clothes, which neither ever worked for long. I finally one day became fed up with the helplessness that I decided step up and step out in faith to trust in Him fully to help bring me hope. Hebrews 11: 1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." There that key word is faith! That is the word I held onto, because faith will bring you hope.
I began to dig into to what God’s Word said about me and not what the world’s words tried to make me believe. Now, it didn’t happen overnight, but I did begin to start seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. The more I dug into God’s Word the more I wanted and sought after Him. It began to help fill a void that I so desperately needed.
Let me give you a little background about myself. My name is Hannah and I grew up having divorced parents. I lived the majority of the time with my mom in Colorado. My dad and stepmom lived in Texas and we visited them off and on and would spend the summers with them. My dad and Momma Jo (because she’s not a stepmom she’s a momma to me) are ministers. So, I grew up in a faith-believing family, knowing God my entire life and experiencing His love for me. As a teenager, I lost my way a little by trying to find my identity in the world and not in Him. Even though I already knew better in the back of my mind.
There is a saying my family likes to use, "You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink."
See we all know in the back of our minds what’s right for us but we tend to get so wrapped up in the world's ways that we can lose our way. But good news!!! God is sitting right there waiting for us to call on Him and He will come running, He even left us a road map, called the Bible to help us navigate.
Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”
That is one of His promises and one that I stood on to help pull me out of my hole of hopelessness. I thought I would share this part of my life with you because sometimes hearing that you are not the only one going through something helps encourage you and brings you hope.
So yes, I have been there I understand the anxiety, the depression, feeling ugly, feeling less than, not worthy, all that goes with it. I get it, but it is also up to us to be the victors of our own lives and not the victims. When we decide to start digging into who God says we are and not who the world says we are...magic happens! Like I said earlier, it will not happen overnight, but dig in and don’t give up because you will begin to have hope, you will begin to be confident, you will begin to be brave.
Through this series of blogs and the campaign “Light Shine Bright” we want to let our lights so shine before y’all that you can see Him and His good works. So that you know you are not alone in your struggles. So that you know where to start setting your focus. God loves you and wants to see you succeed in every area of your life, but we must stay focused on Him and not worldly ways. If you are struggling and need help please reach out to any of us. We are all here to help you, we want to see you succeed in your goals and dreams as well. There are always power in numbers and we are on your side and here to help you!
Again, please know how much God loves you and so do we! That’s why we are letting our lights shine and trying to help you and those around you.
Blessings and Lots of Love,
Hannah
Living In Grace & Style