Hope, Faith and Peace...who needs it?

Some may ask, why can't we just be good people? What is all this stuff about God, Jesus, salvation, church, worship...for some that is a lot of yada, yada, yada.
And, as someone who experiences it and knows what life is like without it, it is still hard to explain to someone without it. Because that's when I look at you and I ask, how do you walk throught this life without faith? without hope? without peace? What do you get out of this world and what it has to offer that really brings you happiness? How do you handle the hurt and pain without knowing someone has it in their hands, and they are taking care of it. Not just anyone...but an all powerful, all knowing God.
I have walked through some very dark times. Times where without God, I would feel such despair. But with God, I walked through those times with hope. I knew there would be another side. I didn't know why I had to walk through it, how long I would walk through it, or what it would look like on the other end, but still I had peace. I was able to have hope and peace because I also had faith. When I handed my life over to God, I really handed it to Him. I knew He would take care of me in the darkest of times. I know He was carrying me through, and He did see the other side. He also knew how this would change me, grow me and how it would prepare me to help someone else.
That is the other beauty...to be with a congregation with this same hope, peace and faith. They also walk you through those times. I really don't like to be around negativity. It makes my skin crawl! So I think about those dark times...and I think if I didn't have those friends who believed as I did, who encouraged my faith, who lifted me up and increased my peace, those dark times would be much darker. They shared in the faith. They didn't tell me to let go of the fight, they didn't tell me it wasn't worth it, they didn't tell me life isn't fair.....they told me to keep the faith, they told me I was a testimony of God's love and work in practice. How inspiring is that?!
I do not want to see anyone walk this world without the knowledge and relationship I have. I want to see you all have what I have. I want to know how to reach you. I want to pray for you and I want you to see what God can do.
My comments are moderated by me before I publish them. If I can help you with anything...questions, clarification, prayer..please post a comment. Don't worry about it being published, if you tell me to keep it unpublished I will. If you ever feel God is speaking to you through my words, I want you to know I pray before I post. I ask for Him to give me the words. I believe God knows before I type who will read these words. So, if you feel like He is talking right to you, He may be. God works in such wonderful ways. He finds us and let's us know he loves us. He finds a way, a place and a time. If it isn't me you reach out to, please reach out to someone....find what I found. Walking through this world with hope, faith and peace is so much better.
May you always find light and salt in my words.