Maybe I'm the only one who has days where I feel ugly, fat, and stupid. But I'm guessing if you arrived at this post, you probably feel that way too. Some days, for no particular reason at all, I wake up in the morning and just feel blah. Inferior. Incapable. Unable to move past the voices lying to my heart. Ugly. Fat. Stupid. I try not to compare myself to other women, and I avoid the 'keeping up with the Joneses' game as much as I can. But my enemy knows where I'm most vulnerable, and my Achilles heel is not feeling good enough. My weakness is wondering whether I'm doing enough and whether I myself am enough. So that's where he attacks. His plan to defeat me often involves degrading my appearance, and he's done it since I was 12. I know this about him, but knowing doesn't always prevent believing. Where does Satan attack you? Maybe he doesn't tell you you're ugly, fat, or stupid, but maybe he tells you you're a terrible wife. A distant mother. A sub-par business owner. Maybe he whispers that your personality is boring, or your giftedness is a joke. Maybe he reminds you of a decision you made...

  Sometimes our lives feel like quicksand. What we thought was solid ground turns out not to be so solid, and it unexpectedly grabs us and pulls us down. No matter how much we struggle to escape, we continue to sink. We want to get out more than anything, but we're stuck. We are trapped in circumstances beyond our control, and there seems to be no obvious solution. Where are you stuck today? In a job you hate? With a spouse you can't change? In a financial crisis you caused but can't solve? Maybe there's no external situation trapping you - maybe you're stuck in your own thoughts. Maybe you're trapped in a cycle of self-hatred and depression. Worry and anxiety. Condemnation and doubt. Maybe your life is a combination of internal and external traps. I've certainly been there. It feels hopeless, doesn't it? Like you'll be there forever, and there's no way out. Every second drags by, and you look around at everyone moving freely while your own feet are in chains. You'd do anything for a change, but you've tried everything that didn't work. You literally have no control, and there's nothing you can do but wait. You are at God's mercy, and you pray He will...

  I know it isn't what you planned. The life you're living right now - the schedule you keep, the unexpected twists and turns, the dissatisfaction you feel - it isn't exactly what you pictured, is it? The child born with special needs. The child you're praying for but still haven't conceived. The job you lost without explanation. The husband who left and gave another his name. The bills you can't pay and the house you can't keep. The family that's imploding. The diagnosis that took your breath. It's not what you planned for, it's not what you prepared for, and it's certainly not what you prayed for. How do you move forward at all, much less with peace and joy, when the life you thought you'd have looks nothing like the one you live? How do you trust that God is good when everything feels so very bad? How do you set your mind on things above when the things nearby demand your time and attention? There is a way, but the way is never easy. It's never natural. It's never obvious. The way is through surrender. Deep down in our cores, we all know we aren't in control. We know we aren't the masters of our universe, and we know things will happen...