Moving Mountains | a process video

Hi Friends!

I don’t know about you but scrolling Pinterest always sparks Bible Journaling ideas for me. If I run across a poignant meme or quote that I want to explore further I will pin it right to my Illustrated Faith board for later. When I ran into this quote I immediately knew I had the right supplies for making this a bible entry.

WOW! That’s a different perspective, right? The Altitude mountains from the Print & Pray shop have been in my stash for quite some time and they always make me think about the peaks and valleys of life. What happens when we’re sitting pretty on that peak? How do things change when we’re dragging ourselves through the valleys below? How can we use our struggles to help others, like this quote suggests?

So I looked up some verses that might reflect this idea and I found Isaiah 41:15 which says:

Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge, new, sharp, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff;

When we’re high on that mountain top and everything’s going right, do we simply relish in the fact that we’re there and forget about the climb up or how long we were in the valley? Or instead when we see someone else at the bottom of the same hill – do we want to give them all of the knowledge and resources to help them make the climb or crush that mountain?

As I think about the valleys and peaks I’ve experienced in my life, my marriage, as a parent and even as a child of God, I am sad that I didn’t realize my trials could be used for good. Hiding them or complaining about them seemed much easier. I built up giant walls of resentment as well. But goodness, how unhealthy and unhelpful is that?

How can we use our struggles to encourage those around us? Maybe your story is a series of ups and downs that have now allowed you to encourage others to persevere. Maybe your story is an opportunity to help heal someone’s marriage because you experienced a similar trial and were able to move that mountain out of the way. Maybe you spent so much time in the valley and climbing and chipping away at the mountainside until you finally feel settled at the top and all you can do is praise God for not letting you fall off the edge. What an awesome way to encourage others to not give up – that God has a plan and the view is amazing!

So much has changed in this part of my life as I get older – and wiser. I’m learning a lot from my experiences – not only in a personal way – but by passing on what I’ve learned to help others. In the thick of the mud, it seems like digging our hole is the only option – and maybe it is as we hurt, process and heal – but eventually when it’s behind us it’s so much easier to turn it into something good. Just like that meme says, God puts us in certain situations and assigns us very specific positions in life – I believe – to show others that with His help, grace and love mountains can be moved. I hope you find a way to use your struggles to encourage someone else!

I’ve also made a process video so you can see how we got here!

Crossway single column journaling Bible | Illustrated Faith Altitude Printables | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Homespun Alpha stickers in Bless Her Heart and Hey Sugar Sugar | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Homespun Alpha Stamp | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Ink Pad in Black | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Acrylic Stamp Block | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd How He Loves Us devotional stamps & cut aparts | Illustrated Faith by Bella Blvd Pen in .25 | Paper Mate Flair Felt Tip Pens