Ask. Seek. Knock.

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" — Matthew 7:7–11

This summer changed me.

Not because everything went according to plan, but because God used it to expose something in my heart that I didn't even know was there.

Earlier this year, I finished school. It was a huge accomplishment, but once the excitement settled, reality hit. I didn't have a clear direction for what was next. I didn't have a job lined up. My savings had dwindled to almost nothing. Things were getting intersting.

Now here's the interesting part.

For nearly two years, God had faithfully provided for me. I wasn't receiving a paycheck, and I wasn't receiving government assistance but somehow, every need was met. Every bill was paid. Every month, God proved Himself faithful.

Yet, the moment school ended, something shifted in my thinking.

Without realizing it, I began believing that because one season had ended, God was now expecting me to provide for myself.

Fear quietly replaced faith.

Instead of asking God what He wanted me to do, I started making decisions based on what made sense financially.

One decision, in particular, involved my son.

I had originally made summer plans, but at the last minute I changed them. I shifted more responsibility to his father because I thought it would help preserve my finances. On paper, it looked like the smarter decision.

The problem wasn't that I made a plan.

The problem was that I never asked God if He wanted me to change it.

I leaned on my own understanding.

Then everything fell apart.

The new plan unraveled at the last minute, leaving me scrambling to figure things out in a very short amount of time.

In the end, I had to go back to the original plan anyway—but now it was much more stressful and much more expensive than if I had simply stayed the course.

Weeks later, the Holy Spirit gently sat me down.

He wasn't condemning me.

He was teaching me.

He showed me something I'll never forget:

The original plan was His plan.

The chaos didn't come because God wasn't providing.

The chaos came because I stopped trusting Him.

I made decisions out of fear instead of faith. I was looking at my lack and not at my source.

Fear will always try to convince us that we have to rescue ourselves.

Faith reminds us that we already have a Savior.

Looking back, I realized that none of the pressure I felt came from God. It came from my own assumptions. I assumed that because my circumstances had changed, God was going to change His expectations of me in this season.

But God hadn't changed at all.

He was still my Father.

He was still my Provider.

He was still my Shepherd.

He was still Jehovah Jireh.

This experience gave Matthew 7:7–11 a completely new meaning.

Ask.

Before making the decision.

Before changing the plan.

Before trying to solve the problem.

Just ask.

Seek.

Seek His wisdom before seeking your own solution.

Seek His perspective before trusting your own understanding.

Knock.

Keep pursuing Him until you have peace.

Not every open door is opened by God, but every door God opens comes with His peace.

One of the greatest lessons I learned this summer is that I never have to figure life out by myself. God never asked me to carry the weight of providing for myself. He asked me to trust Him.

He's the One who owns "the cattle on a thousand hills" (Psalm 50:10). He's the Creator of heaven and earth.

What feels impossible to me can be changed by one word from Him. Why would I depend on my limited understanding when I have access to the wisdom of the One who created everything?

I'm His daughter.

And good fathers take care of their children.

So if you're in a season where you're anxious about finances, your future, parenting, work, or what's next, let me encourage you with what God lovingly taught me:

Don't panic.

Don't rush.

Don't make permanent decisions based on temporary fear.

Ask your Father first.

You don't have to carry what He never asked you to hold.

Because when you know who your Father is, you stop living like an orphan.

You ask.

You seek.

You knock.

And then... you trust Him to open the right door.

Prayerfully,

Erika Michelle