30 days of joy - COMPLETED

Crazy as it may be but I did it. I actually completed my challenge. These past 30 days were rather interesting; A LOT has happened. It amazes me to look at these photos and reflect on how my month was spent and I have to say, God is a crazy God. This challenge came to me right before a certain reality hit and I really believe that God used this to prepare me to handle that. These past 30 days, I wouldn't say I spent them all joyfully but within each day, even the darkest ones, I was able to find light to keep me going. I think that's where the beauty lies. We live in a dark world and life is going to be tough. Our days will be hard and sometimes all you'll do is cry. God never promised that following Him would be easy but He did say it'd be worth it. Much of my month was spent in a darker place but it was His light that kept me going. There were love and hope to be found everywhere and since my challenge was to keep my eyes open for them, I wasn't able to close off my heart to them the way I would have. This made me realize that joy isn't hard to find; we make it hard, when we forget His promises, love and strength and just focus on how difficult life is. We were never asked to go through life alone but somehow we refuse to rely on him. We, or maybe it's just me, spend so much time trying to get by with our strength alone that we end up burning out which also led me to this challenge. It really helped me see how God's promises hold true. Maybe I won't be documenting my joys for the world to see from this point on but I hope through this challenge, my view (and hopefully others') on my day to day life will be changed. Joy and God's love isn't hiding from me, it's usually the opposite.

And just to end it off, a poem by the wonderful rmdrake:

"I made myself from all the photographs I never took, from all the love I never received and from all the moments that never happened. And it has been too real, it has been a beautiful struggle; one that has always reminded me of how easy it was to laugh."