Hi everyone and Happy Tuesday! Today I have the pleasure of hosting a very special guest blogger, my friend Paige McGoldrick. I have known Paige for a few years now and her family has a very special story, so of course I got really excited when she asked if she could guest blog for me! I pray you are encouraged by her words today, just as I was.

In some seasons God doesn’t call us to move mountains, He just asks us to take baby steps every day. Almost 4 ½ years after watching my father die, I am finally able to look back and see how faithful God was during the excruciating time of terminal sickness, death and grief. And as I look back, I see not only how my whole life was changed drastically from a major life event, but also how God was guiding me through the little steps every day.

If you have ever struggled with death, depression or any kind of grief, you understand how hard it can be to even get out of bed each morning and function throughout the day. I felt that weight every day for a few years after my dad passed away.

Let me start from the beginning… In the fall of 2012, the start of my senior year in high school, my dad was diagnosed with ALS. He lived only 1 year and 3 weeks after the official diagnosis. My father was 47 when he died. I was 19 years old, just starting my first year of college and Parker, my brother, was a senior in high school at the age of 17. You can imagine the downward spiral we were sent into as we watched our lives collapse because of that death. Our small family of 4 was even smaller now. Forever.

So what now? After long days, weeks and months that turned into years where it felt like the whole world kept going as my life was stopped, somehow my feet managed to keep taking baby steps. One foot in front of the other. That “somehow” was God’s grace. Like I said at the beginning, this was a time when God wasn’t calling me to do huge things in the eyes of humans, but He asked me to get up each day and take it one step at a time. Those years were long and seemed to drag, yet I see how God was faithful in the normal, hard and mundane days.

One of the big ways I’ve seen God’s faithfulness in small ways throughout the last four years has been through the people around me. When my dad became sick, there were church members who offered to drive me to and from school each weekend so that I was able to spend time with my family. Friends at school brought me food at meals when I felt I couldn’t eat. Those same friends sat with me when social situations caused too much anxiety. Friends, family and even just acquaintances showed up to bring my family food, dessert or flowers to bring color to our dreary lives. A huge answer to prayer was that my mom, brother and I were able to be by my dad’s side when he passed away.

Can you see God’s faithfulness in the little parts of your life? I believe part of our personal walk with God is to search and acknowledge the little acts of faithfulness he provides to us daily. This month has been a hard one; it has not gone as planned and most days seemed to drag on. Yet last weekend the weather was beautiful! I was able to go on a run outside and spend time in the sun with my fiance. It was a few days of rejuvenation where God was saying, “Here is a glimpse of hope that I am with you always, my child.”

It may seem small but even in the normal days, God is faithful. Take a look around your life and find it.

Paige McGoldrick is a dog lover, self-proclaimed food critic, proud Michigander and fiance to Noah. She can be found sharing thoughts and pictures of her life on Twitter and Instagram.

ALS Christianity Faith paige mcgoldrick patrick mcgoldrick Trials