{I wrote this post just a few days before our sweet son was born. And now that he is here, I want to share it with you even more, because I’ve found it to be so true this far.}

Nearing the end of this pregnancy, there have been days where the fears have begun to flow. Because change is coming…

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Any parent will tell you that your life will never be the same after you have a baby. And that’s good to know, but at times, it’s incredibly scary to hear.

There was one morning, where my fears began to rage and I just wanted someone who’d been there to sit me down and tell me that it would all be okay. And I could feel my heart beating faster and my blood pressure rising as fear began to grip my chest tighter and tighter.

So I prayed and dug deep into my fears and prayed even harder. And I was walking down the street to Starbucks, with our laptop in tow, when God spoke freedom straight into my anxious soul.

Maybe you aren’t a soon-to-be parent, but maybe you do have change looming on the horizon of your life. Maybe it’s a small change, like moving to a new house or starting a new position at work. Maybe it’s a large change like moving across the country or even across the world.

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But whatever change you’re facing today, and whatever fears that change is stirring up inside you, I pray that these truths God whispered into my fearful soul will comfort you too…

Different doesn’t mean bad.

Hard doesn’t mean worse.

Overwhelmed doesn’t mean defeated.

Exhausted doesn’t mean hopeless.

Different doesn’t mean bad.

Lonely doesn’t mean alone.

Small doesn’t mean pointless.

Painful doesn’t mean joyless.

Different doesn’t mean bad.

Needy doesn’t mean helpless.

Difficult doesn’t mean worthless.

…different doesn’t mean bad.

Yes, my life will be different with a baby.

Yes, our marriage will be different as parents.

Yes, my body will be different postpartum.

Yes, things will be different…but different does’t mean bad.

Different doesn’t mean that I’m forgotten or forsaken.

Different doesn’t mean that I’m left hopeless or joyless.

Different doesn’t mean that I’m without peace or rest.

No matter how challenging my different is, no matter what challenges my change brings, God is the same. 

No matter how scary your different is, no matter what challenges your change brings, God is the same.

We still have moment by moment access to Him for peace, comfort, joy, and hope. We still have His Spirit living inside us. We still have a calling and ability to bring Him glory in whatever we do.

Oh what joy to know that however the landscape of my life might change, my God never will. And through Him, different will never mean bad…because different need never mean without Him.

Be blessed