Sometimes we need to take a moment to look back on a year that held things we didn’t expect but yielded things we didn’t imagine. Sometimes we need to turn around for just a moment before we step across that finish line and celebrate the fact that the strength of our God does not depend on the strength of our faith. Even when my faith has faltered, my God has not. I thought I knew where I was headed this year. It turns out that I did not. It turns out that God was a whole lot more interested in drawing me to Himself than He was in leading me anywhere else.

And it turns out I’m thankful for it.

So here are 14 things I learned in 2014…A look back before a step forward.

1. There is darkness in this world, but there is a God who pierces darkness. And sometimes He takes our vision to give us His.
2. The dearest friends are the ones who can make you laugh and who will let you cry.
3. The Body of Christ, the Church (and I mean the one bigger than the one you attend or don’t attend on Sunday mornings), the people of God who call on His name…they’re just like everybody else. But I am grateful for them and grateful to be a part of them.
4. There are some things the Father intends to keep only between Himself and His daughter.
5. Change (the good, the bad and the ugly) is uncomfortable and inevitable. I’m not sure how I feel about it. But sometimes God says “Let go.”
6. Grown ups can get mono. And it’s a real bummer.
7. God enjoys it when we enjoy Him.
8. Disappointment can do a number on us.
9. Sometimes we find Him in exactly the place we were convinced He had left us.
10. Even when we have lost sight of Him, He has never taken His eyes off of us.
11. Courage does not always look like it.
12. A few things about bearing fruit…and those seasons when we feel like we’ve got nothing.
13. Our God is an excellent Father to His daughters.
14. Hope is something much more than mere wishing.