For those of you feeling discouraged... I recently shared with a friend a story from my life that might help.
A few years ago I had a comfty desk job and I was able to build up my credit and save enough to invest in a home. Well, very soon after I bought it, I got laid off and then couldn't find work for almost 2 years. My girlfriend also left me during this time. I was devastated and felt hopeless to the point where I joined the military as a 32 yr old man. I remember rolling around on the ground and running with 18 year olds. 90 boys stuck in a room with constant training and beat downs for 2 months with barely any sleep. The song Beautiful by Eminem ran thru my head during that entire time and I missed my ex miserably. I failed my first run by 4 minutes (which is an eternity in 1.5 miles run time), I tricked my mind into thinking that I was running home to her and that was the only way my mind would allow me to pass. But when I reached the end all I saw was a number and a bunch of strangers. After bootcamp, I went on to technical training in Virginia for an additional 7 months where I learned the art of war much different from Bible college. I came back home to an empty house and that was just last Aug. But it was during that time that I learned alot about myself and I became a better man a stronger man. I learned to accept the things I couldn't change and did things beyond what I thought was possible. But through it all God was with me and in fact as I am now typing this, I realize that this was part of God's bootcamp to prepare me for something big, something epic. He loves you and He is famous for redeeming seemingly hopeless situations. Trust him always.