When 2020 began, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I would be leaving soon. No, not this world, but the apartment complex where I used to live. At the time, I had no money saved and my lease didn’t end until October. But somehow I knew that I would be moving soon.
And in June of the same year, I found myself settling into a new apartment close to family, in a quiet neighborhood; God’s gift to me in the middle of a pandemic. God is trustworthy. Even in the difficult seasons, God remains unshakeable. And as I look back over this past year, I’ve seen miracle, after miracle, after miracle in my life. I’ve witnessed God’s amazing grace in the midst of the storm.
Surprised, but not shaken.
When the lockdowns hit, I lost my job. Surprised but not shaken, I got to work right away, busying myself trying to build a business from home. I began receiving unemployment benefits that would run out in August, but by that time I had planned to fully support myself online. In July however, I received a phone call from the Workforce Agency that changed everything.
“Can you start tomorrow?“
A lady from the unemployment agency called to see if I was interested in a Contact Tracing Assistant position at the Public Health Department, but she wanted me there at 8 am the next morning. Someone must have backed out at the last minute! I was hesitant since I had plans of my own, but I prayed about it and felt God’s peace. And in obedience I accepted, even though it meant earning less than what I received through unemployment.
Yes, I was one of those people…
But my obedience set off a series of events that catapulted my walk with God. And all I did was say yes.
The Contact Tracing Assistant job included no contact tracing to speak of, but involved various tasks centered around the pandemic. I met so many wonderful people, and the downtime was plentiful: sitting at work, watching movies or blogging until the phone rang. When the novelty wore off, I got down to business, taking classes online and once again working on my website. That time at the health department was so special.
But I had no idea what would come next.
I had no idea at the time, that in January I would be back in college, working towards my bachelor’s degree. Finishing school was a dream of mine that had died years ago, but God revived it.
Since I left school in 2011, a decade ago, I went from job to job with no real passion. My mother had just passed away and my role as a caregiver was over. I had to figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. So I decided to pursue retail management, and began job hopping.
When I felt like I hit a ceiling, or grew tired of my current position, I left in search for better pay and more prestige. I went from being a substitute teacher, to coffee shop manager, dollar store manager, mall store manager, and finally a manager for a furniture store. But I gave it all up because I was dying inside. I had no desire to be a manager, no matter how much I earned.
Getting back in school was a miracle.
In 2020 I came face to face with the darkest time of my life and I had to cling to God for peace everyday. One thing I did was attend a women’s counseling group at my church. Our group leader wanted to meet with us one on one before the group began, and as I was telling her about myself, she could see the regret on my face when I talked about school. She said to me, “It’s never too late to finish,” and planted a seed in my heart that grew and blossomed into what it has today.
A few nights later, I went to WTAMU’s website just to look around. I saw a link for easy re-admission for former WT students who were enrolled within the past ten years. This semester made ten years exactly. If I had waited just one more semester to reapply, it would have been too late. I felt a bit of hope, so I applied on a whim, and was quickly accepted. Encouraged, I prayed, “Lord if this if for me, please open every door, smooth every path and remove every obstacle in Jesus name.”
You should know that at the time, I owed the university two thousand dollars plus interest before I could even register for classes. I had holds on my account and could not get into class before the holds were taken off; holds that had been there for years.
The spring semester was only a few months away and I had absolutely no money saved. Not only would I have to pay off the holds, but I would have to buy books and pay the tuition myself, as I had exhausted all government help and it was too late for scholarships. But I remembered the prayer I prayed, “Lord, if this is for me, smooth every path in Jesus name.”
I had to trust God every step of the way.
And everything just kind of just fell into place. No process was too difficult or arduous. Even with ten years worth of rapid changes in technology, I still had no trouble going through the process of getting back in. And at the start of 2021, I was finally greenlighted and ready to go. Except for one thing; I still owed the university the two thousand dollars plus ten years worth of interest.
Another miracle.
In 2011, I took out two student loans and then, immature and unsure of my life, I just quit school. The loans I took out were sent to collections and sat there for ten years, unpaid and collecting interest. When I was encouraged to reapply, little did I know that at the same time, the collection agency that held my loans wrote them off and sent them back to WT. They wrote them off and cancelled all that interest! That meant all I owed the university was the principle amount. Thank you Jesus!
With my sister’s help, I was able to pay off what I owed and register for classes before the spring semester began. And I’m believing God that every semester, from now until I graduate, will be paid in full and on time by the grace of God. Again, thank you Jesus.
Busy days, busy nights.
So now my days are filled with work, and my nights with studying, midterms, essays and exams. And I’m loving it. God has given me the faith to believe for the impossible, as I’m in a situation where I have to trust entirely on Him. Financially, if He doesn’t make it happen, it just won’t happen! Have you ever found yourself in a situation like that?
But I thank the Lord because He proves Himself faithful time and time again. I just have to trust Him.
As I look back over this past year,
I thank God. All through the year, I’ve never been without income even after losing my job three months before moving, and I never became ill. Thank you, Lord. If my throat ever felt sore, I simply prayed over it, cursed the sickness, and declared the scripture over my body in faith, and the next morning I woke up feeling better. God’s Word proves true time and time again.
Where it all began.
Now as I begin working again where I was laid off a year ago, my life seems to have come full circle. God is first in my life and I’m working towards a college degree, but with one important difference. I’ve grown in faith, wisdom and discernment. And I wouldn’t trade that for anything.
God has carried me through some mighty storms this year, and here I am on the other side grateful and full of joy. I’m learning to become a better writer, and studying my favorite language, Spanish. My car still gets me to work and back, my day job feels like home, I lost thirty pounds without hardly trying, and I’m able to sit in my quiet apartment and write. No more fighting neighbors, loud noises, and various smells of smoke in my apartment.
God has taken care of me, and I never had to worry. He’s that good.
As my faith began to grow, I noticed my prayers being answered quickly and mightily. Praying with coworkers, the seemingly impossible became possible. Bodies healed, sleep restored, lost animals found, peace restored and so on. God is so good.
When you experience the living God and let Him truly become your source of comfort, you’ll find that God is so much better than you could have imagined. I promise. I’m not saying this to boast about my relationship with Him. No way! I want you to see how amazing God’s love is, and know that it’s for you.
Sit down and take notice of what’s around you. If you make a list of every blessing God has given you, I know you’ll fill page after page; no matter what you’re going through in the moment. Am I saying my life is perfect? Of course not! But God is perfect, and as a believer, He is yours and you are His. Forever. God promised me a long time ago that He would take care of me, and He has done just that. Thank you, Lord.
