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Why You’re Not Alone

Finding God’s Character in Everyday Struggles

Author, artist, creative business strategist and founder of GraceLaced.com, Ruth Chou Simons, joined Family Life Radio in a conversation about her new book – Pilgrim, in which she shares 25 ways God’s character leads us onward. Check out her conversation with Family Life Radio’s morning show.

Ruth says, “Pilgrim is a devotional that’s really come out of years of recognizing that while I might be looking for little signs along the road that tell me how to get where I want to go, God desires to point me to who He is as I’m trying to get somewhere.”

Ruth believes her goal with her art and writing is always to point people to God’s grace and who God is in our everyday lives. She asks, “Because at the end of the day, you  can go to church on Sunday and think through what you’re learning, but when the rubber meets the road in your everyday life, and you’re going, ‘Hey, this is a circumstance I wasn’t expecting, or my life isn’t turning out the way I expected or hoped for, how then do we take our next steps?”

God says, “Follow my lead, and know who I am.”

When you’re grappling with unmet expectations or challenges, it’s comforting to remember that you’re on a pilgrimage toward an eternal home with God.

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“This is not our home, right? We are going towards a destination that is sacred. Holy. We want to be with God forever.” Ruth continues, “But right now, this every day that you and I are on, it is hard sometimes. The road is windy, it’s bumpy. It’s never exactly what we planned for. And most of the time it feels like we’re climbing straight up a steep climb and the end is not in sight.”

Ruth admits that’s how she feels all the time. “You know, we could have perfectly obedient children, a job promotion or go shopping and find our favorite shoes on sale. None of those things will ultimately be satisfying. And there’s good reason for that because we were not made for this world. And so. Pilgrim, the title of this devotional, I hope, will remind us, day by day, that we were made for another world. We were made for Him.”

“It’s God’s character that we need to keep our eyes on, not the journey itself.”

And we all can feel so isolated and separate from God.

How do you remind yourself that you’re not alone on this journey?

You were created for fellowship – with God, but also with one another.

“I think we’re most alone when we start thinking that we got to do this thing on our own, and we can’t tell people how much we’re struggling,” Ruth says.

We can turn to the Internet for fellowship or companionship online. And sometimes we do. Ruth says she’s “grateful for true online relationships. But most of the time we’re scrolling – not actually engaging in a deeper way where we’re doing life with somebody else.”

Ruth reminds herself that she’s not alone on this journey. She says she goes back to who God is – “He’s omnipresent. He is actually with me all the time. And He is God. ‘Emmanuel, God with us,’ meaning He really came to us when we could not go to Him.”

When you feel isolated or unsure, remember that God is omnipresent.

Ruth suggests that daily encouragement and accountability with fellow believers can help us stay grounded. “I don’t need to sit in my own room and be like, ‘Wow, this is so hard.’ I need to call somebody up and say, ‘Can we meet for coffee? I’d like to share what is going on in my life.’ Let’s cheer each other on.” And she references 1 Thessalonians 5:11 that says, “Encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (ESV).

Ruth says, “This is what we must do to remind each other we’re not alone.”

In her book, Pilgrim, Ruth walks us through 25 ways God’s character leads us onward and offers a daily reminder to focus on God’s character as the guiding light in our lives, especially when the road gets tough.

Ruth Chou Simons is a Wall Street Journal bestselling and award-winning author of several books and Bible studies, including GraceLaced, Beholding and Becoming, and When Strivings Cease. She is an artist, entrepreneur, podcaster and speaker, using each of these platforms to spiritually sow the Word of God into people’s hearts. Through her online shoppe at GraceLaced.com and her social media community, Simons shares her journey of God’s grace intersecting daily life with word and art. Ruth and her husband, Troy, are grateful parents to six boys — their greatest adventure. Learn more at gracelaced.com. Follow Ruth on social  https://www.instagram.com/ruthchousimons/?hl=en
https://www.youtube.com/@RuthChouSimons
https://www.facebook.com/gracelaced/

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