Someone I follow on Instagram posted a photo with the caption: “What do I have that I have not received from God?” It stuck with me. For some reason in my head it turned into though,
“What good do I have that is not from the Lord?”
I did a counseling session with a friend who is a shepherd (campus pastor) at my school a couple of months ago and she said, “Mary Kate, you sound mad at God. That’s ok. Just be honest with yourself about it.”
And I was. My dad and my sister were the sickest I’d ever seen them, and in another situation going on I felt like the Lord wasn’t on my side. I felt like He was siding with someone else and was pitted against me. I was struggling with depression again and was mad He would let me suffer through that again. I was like, “God! Give me my life back. Stop putting me through all of this! Why are you so against me?”
Then it was like clear as day I could sense Him say,
“But Mary Kate, every good thing you have is from me.”
All these good things I felt He was holding from me, I wouldn’t even have them in the first place if it wasn’t for Him! I wanted to experience joy again and felt that He was taking away the joy that belonged to ME. But the thing was , it never belonged to me in the first place. That was His. NOTHING belonged to me in the first place. Everything I have is because He gave it to me.
You talk about a revelation in my life. It’s changed my perspective on everything.
I hate it when things go wrong. We all do. We want things to go right. I’m the first to question why God allowed things to go wrong. But if it weren’t for Him, nothing would ever go right.
Psalm 87:7 says, “Singers and dancers alike say ‘All my springs are in You.’”
Spurgeon says, “The springs of my faith and all my graces, the springs of my life and all my pleasures; the springs of my activity and all its right doings; the springs of my hope, and all its heavenly anticipations, all lie in thee, my Lord. Without the Spirit I should be as a dry well, a mocking cistern, destitute of power to bless myself or others…therefore, with all thy joyful people will I sing thy praises.”
All my springs are in Him.
He holds all my fountains.
Every good thing I have is from the Lord.
One of my earliest memories was being at my grandmother’s house and my big cousin, Riley, whose a few years older than me, was singing “Every Move I Make.” (Please tell me y’all remember this song!)
It goes:
“Every move I make I make in You
You make me move Jesus
Every breath I take I breathe in You
Every step I take I take in You
You are my way Jesus
Every breath I take I breathe in You
Waves of mercy
Waves of grace
Everywhere I look I see Your face
Your love has captured me
Oh my God, this love
How can it be?”
My life is because of Him.
Literally everything I do I do because He is the One sustaining me.
Instead of getting upset with Him for the bad things that happen, I’m learning to be thankful for all the little things in my life that I take for granted.
When I am consciously thanking the Lord for things throughout my day, I find myself more joyful. I think it’s because when we are thanking Him, we are putting ourselves in His presence, and Psalm 16:11 says in His presence there is fullness of joy!
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Exactly what I needed to hear this morning. Thank you for sharing! 🙂
You’re AMAZING!! I love reading your stuff – it’s so encouraging 🙂
This is beautiful.
This is something I’ve need to hear ! Thank you !
*needed
SO good! The Lord has been teaching me something so similar to this over the last two weeks:
Yes we are called to be thankful in all the things He has given us. But not only that, He does not withhold any good thing from us!!!! (Psalm 84:11)
God has us where we’re at, in this season of life (whatever that looks like), for a purpose. And if we are truely seeking after Him and allowing His will to become our own, He will not hold back. He provides!!
Amanda Cook’s song ‘Pieces’ ties into this so well! “You don’t give Your heart in pieces. You don’t hide Yourself to tease us.”
He is not a God who hides or withholds!! And when we keep this in mind, at least for me, it’s been so much easier to find joys in the little things!!!! (New mercies every morning ❤️)
Ugh so good, and so cool how the Lord simultaneously works in our lives ?❤️ Praying for you, Mary Kate!
Omgosh. Haha i definitely wore that song out. Love you so much.
I’ve never thought of this perspective but I love it! Thanks for sharing your light Mary Kate!
How powerful. Thank you so much for your vulnerability in sharing how God is changing you and what is going on in your life. I can really relate and reflect on my life.
Wow! Mary Kate, this is one of my favorite blogs from you! Thanks so much for sharing this! I love how genuine and real you are. Saying a prayer for you & your family today. Lots of love, Marsie
Mary Kate, thank you so much for this post! I needed to read this today. I am going through a rough spot, but the reminder to be thankful for the small and little things that God has given me is a great reminder! Praying for your dad, sister, and you!
Wow. This is a really good post! Anxiety, panic, and depression have plagued my life for the past few weeks (really bad). It have begged and prayed to god to help me battle this and get back to normal. I’m praying for your sister, dad, and YOU! ❤️
Thank you for your transparency!! I needed to be reminded of these truths today!
Beautiful!! Great reminder for us!!
I love the title of this post. Such a great reminder.
i know i’m a little late reading this week, but i really needed to hear that! i have gone through a lot in my life and that’s past and present now. but it helps from you to hear that my joy comes from the Lord FOR SURE! thanks Mary Kate!
Mary Kate, first of all your blog is always such a blessing, but this post especially. I feel like I am in a very similar season to you right now. I’m very frustrated waiting on God to do something I know He will do, but I’m impatient and worldly evidence points to the contrary. Recently I read something about Jonah praising THEN being freed from the whale and a couple of other things on thanksgiving that really hit home and I know it was a point God was trying to make to me. At first I found that while I could find plenty of things to thank God for, I was worried it felt a little forced, and I felt like it coming organically from me wasn’t something I knew how to make happen. I happened to look through an old prayer journal from 2+ years ago and while I was going through a different rough time I thanked God so much and in so many ways. That could have been discouraging to me – that was something in me I had somehow lost, but instead I felt encouraged. I saw I was once that way and just knew I could easily be that way again. I’ve been putting myself through the motions of finding things to be thankful about, and it has let to it becoming more natural – while I was reading this blog I actually got a text message that truly made me rejoice and thank God without trying to be that way. Anyways, I’m hoping what I’ve been learning helps you and others.
Always sang that song in Sunday school, one of my favs! I still remember the actions and everything. Thanks so much for sharing, I needed to hear this!
Wow…so awesome and needed to hear this. Worry and fear and a host of other things assail is so much of the time…but He has given us everything and so we can be thankful for everything!! Beautiful perspective on praising Him❤️