When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned
Have you ever looked at your life and thought, This is not how I thought this would go?
Maybe the diagnosis came. The relationship changed. The job ended. The finances shifted. Your children needed something you weren’t prepared for. Or the answer you prayed for still hasn’t come.
You had a plan.
And then life changed it.
I know this space well. There have been many moments in my life when things didn’t go as expected. During my fourth pregnancy, I went in for an ultrasound and received news I didn’t expect. A dear friend passed away, and I was bedbound and unable to visit her in her last moments on earth. Our family faced a difficult circumstance that changed the way we look at life forever.
And in July 2021, when my healing journey began, the path in front of me looked nothing like the one I expected. New symptoms. New decisions. New timelines. Treatments to consider. Longer healing. Progress followed by setbacks.
Some days require faith to trust what I cannot see, bravery to take the next step, and joy to notice that goodness still exists in the middle of it all. My daughter made me bracelets with those three words, and I wear them often to doctor appointments as a reminder that I am never alone.
We all have seasons in life that don’t look like what we expected. Perhaps your unexpected season looks completely different from mine.
And perhaps you need the same reminder I do:
A change in your plans does not mean God has stopped working.
You may not know what happens next. You don’t have to.
There is freedom and peace in knowing we don’t have to know.
You can meet God right here—and take the next faithful step from here.
JOY-FUELED COACHING TIP
When your mind starts racing ahead trying to solve everything, bring yourself back to one question:
What is the next faithful step I can take today?
Not the next ten.
Just one.
(This question has helped me SO much on my unexpected healing journey)
(This question has helped me SO much on my unexpected healing journey)
SCRIPTURE TO HOLD FOR JOY
“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.”
—2 Corinthians 4:8 (NLT)
—2 Corinthians 4:8 (NLT)
JOY FOR THE JOURNEY
Your plans may have changed. God’s presence hasn’t.
LET’S JOURNEY TOGETHER WITH JOY
If life looks different than you expected, you don’t have to figure out the entire pathway forward today.
Join me for weekly Tip Tuesdays and visit my Joy-Fueled Lifestyle Hub for simple encouragement, practical tools, and joy-filled ideas to help you cultivate faith, wellness, purpose, and joy in the season you’re actually living.
Let’s keep choosing joy together—one meaningful small step at a time.
Letticia (Dr. Joy) oxox
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