It’s day 9 of the series 31 Days of Lessons Learned from My 20’s. If you want to read all the posts in this series, you can find every post listed here. If you want to have all the posts delivered to your email inbox, subscribe here.

I never knew how afraid I would be in my 20’s. 

I was just concerned up until around year 26. Then I got downright afraid. Afraid of my future. And even more specifically afraid of never getting married. 

I know this is true for many girls but not all girls. My dream for my life centered around that one milestone. I didn’t have huge career ambitions. I didn’t desire status or wealth or experience. I just wanted a family. 

And the thought of never having one not only left me afraid of being alone for the rest of my life, but it even more so it left me afraid of who God really made me to be. 

If I wasn’t going to be a wife and mother, then who was I?

My desires ran deep, my dreams spread wide.

See, I wasn’t the typical college student. It was in my college apartment that I made my first whole chicken and baked my first cake. It was also there that I would look at Family Fun magazine and dream of the day I could put all those fun ideas to use (remember, this was centuries before Pinterest). Yes, I was a little weird if you compared me to my sorority sisters.

But that’s who I was – kind of like my red lipstick. 

I didn’t handle being afraid of my future very well. Instead of surrendering completely to God’s will, trusting Him that He knows what’s best and has a perfect plan to help me – not harm me – I tried to take matters into my own hands. 

What I wish I had of realized is that God was already in my future – there waiting on me. He was in my future preparing for me while in my present He was equipping me.

“It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8

My only responsibility was to completely surrender to whatever He wanted to do in my life. 

My dear friend, Emily, is a real life example of a single woman who is not afraid of her future. I’d love for you to read her story here. 

Maybe you’re not afraid of being single forever. Maybe you’re afraid of something health related or something big you feel called to do. Maybe it’s something concerning your career or family. Maybe you’re afraid of something bad happening. Whatever the source of your fear remember . . .

Lesson #8:

God is in your future preparing for you while He’s in your present equipping you. <–Click to Tweet!

How does the thought of God already being in your future preparing for you leave you feeling?