Last year was really good and I can’t lie about that. At the end of the year, I was having a conversation with a friend and I mentioned my fear of being on God’s “strongest soldier” list for 2025 because of how smooth things had been for me. It’s interesting that I automatically assumed that a good year would inevitably be followed by a tough one. At the end of the call, my friend, while praying, said that God should help me see I can be a “soft life babe” while still being one of His strongest soldiers.
Truthfully, the year wasn’t all ‘great’. At the beginning of the year, the first sermon series in church was titled ‘Battles and Blessings’ and I can’t think of a better way to describe the year. I experienced both blessings and battles, the difference was I leaned into God much more. In doing so, I realized how little I was focusing on the battles. At one point, I asked God why people often miss the beauty and goodness around them, and His answer was simple: “Because they choose to focus on the negatives.”
Contrary to popular belief, we don’t go through separate “blessing seasons” and “battle seasons.” They happen simultaneously. We are always experiencing the goodness of God—after all, we’ve been blessed with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3). This is our reality: we live in the fullness of what God has done.
I definitely had moments in 2024 where I was focused on the negatives. Yet, the Holy Spirit constantly reminded me of the coexisting blessings in every situation. Philippians 4:8 instructs us to focus on what is true, noble, pure, and praiseworthy, fully acknowledging that negatives exist. But we have a choice.
Philippians 4:8
Finally, [a]believers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God’s word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things [center your mind on them, and implant them in your heart].
As this year begins, let’s resolve to focus on the blessings around us. It may sound repetitive, but we need the reminder: God has done great things. When we dwell on those great things, the battles fade into the background and become insignificant.
I can’t promise you that 2025 will be free of battles. In fact, the Bible guarantees that we’ll face challenges (John 16:33). But I can promise you this: there will also be blessings. Honestly, there already are—you just need to see them.
"Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law" (Psalm 119:18).
This prayer has helped me see the beauty of God’s work in my life, and I hope it does the same for you.
On a lighter note, I am trying to do this writing thing a bit more this year and will be engaging in a writing challenge, wish me luck!