It's almost as if you're driving up a long winding road--a steep mountain of which you can't see the top of. You're in your own car, in your own space, trying your best to control a steering wheel and navigate through a confusing set of directions. You hit a lot of speed bumps along the way--high and low ones, speed bumps that you never see coming, and speed bumps that you question why they're even there in the first place. You hit ramps along the way that throw you off balance, and several confusing road signs.

But that okay. That's completely, 100% fine.

Think about it for a second--if you knew exactly what direction you're supposed to be going in, knew exactly what was at the top of the mountain, and knew exactly what obstacles were coming your way, life would be boring. Life wouldn't be spontaneous, and it wouldn't be fun. There wouldn't be any teachable moments, and you wouldn't learn anything. If you knew exactly everything that was going to happen...well, life wouldn't be life.

Life is supposed to be weird. It's supposed to have all these twists and turns and confusing signs because it won't always go according to your plan. Life goes according to HIS plan.

A favorite verse I always hold on to is Proverbs 3:5--

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding."

He has a plan for each and every one of us-- a plan greater than our own, to build us into the best possible person we are meant to be. I know the situations you're facing may seem impossible to come back from, no matter how many times you pick yourself back up again. But I promise you, there's always a way, because you can do anything you set your heart and mind to.

No matter how much we want to, we will never be able to have full control of the steering wheel. There are just some circumstances and some situations you won't be able to control. And that's fine.

But what you can control, is how you go about the situations and obstacles that come your way. You control how you react, how you set your goals, and how you make a plan for yourself. You may not be able to control what happens to you, but you can control what needs to be changed--whether it's your attitude or the die-hard habits you're trying to get rid of. Trust the process in that things will work out one way or the other.

And after you identify what you need to change and come up with a plan, you pick yourself back up again and find yourself. You don't dare let the obstacles knock you down, and you take control of the situation.

If you don't like something, change it. If you set goals to accomplish something, work on those goals. If you made a mistake, that's okay. You're 100% allowed to make mistakes. Learn from it, and change what you need to change. If you want something bad enough, go get it. Don't let the hardships in life break you; instead, let them make you.

So take these crazy speed bumps and twists in your path and turn them into teachable moments because these are the moments that will mold you into a stronger, better person. Reaching the top of the mountain will be worth it, and you can finally say "I did it."