Faith in the Middle

Still Working for My Good (Romans 8:28)

/ Baylee Snelling / 1 Comment

The other day, I asked God to speak to me.
I told Him I’d be paying attention. That I didn’t want to miss it.
I wasn’t asking for a burning bush — just a whisper. A moment. Something only He could orchestrate.

And then, He did.

My daily devotional that morning opened with a verse I’ve always loved — Romans 8:28.
And later that day, without knowing, my counselor brought up the same exact verse.
“It reminds me of Romans 8:28,” she said.
I smiled — not because it was new, but because it was confirmation.
God saw me listening. And He answered.

That verse has been anchoring me lately:
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Not just in the easy things. Not just in the visible ones.
In all things.

This season hasn’t felt good.
It’s felt raw and heavy and filled with waiting.
But He keeps reminding me — He’s not wasting any of it.
He’s still writing the story.
And He’s still working for my good.

Today, I read something else that hit me straight in the chest.
It said:
“Don’t settle for Ishmael when God has Isaac for you.”
That’s what I’ve been trying to hold onto — that God’s timing,
His ways, His purposes — are always worth the wait.
Even when I don’t understand.
Even when I’m tempted to reach for something just to feel in control again.

I don’t want to rush what God is still preparing.
I don’t want to interrupt what He’s still unfolding.

Because what He has for me — for us —
isn’t second best.
It’s the very thing I’ve been trusting Him for.

If You’ve Found Yourself Here

/ Baylee Snelling / Leave a comment

It’s interesting,
how when we know about something in advance, we plan for it.
If I’d known I would someday be carrying so much heartache,
I would’ve done anything to avoid it.

We don’t ever knowingly walk straight into pain.

But somehow —
God has taken the wreckage of what tried to undo me,
and turned it into a place where others can rest.

Not because I have all the answers.
Not because everything is healed.
But because I know what it feels like to wonder if it ever will be.

I know the silence.
The shame.
The desperate searching for someone — anyone —
who’s been there too.

And now?
I get to be that voice.
That pause.
That reminder:
You’re not alone.
You’re not too broken.
You’re not behind.

This isn’t polished ministry.
It’s sacred survival.
It’s presence.
And somehow, it’s purpose.

So if you’ve found yourself here —
in this quiet corner of the internet —
I hope you know this:

You can rest for a moment.
I’ve made space for you here.
From the wreckage I never planned for… to your weary heart…
thank you, for allowing my voice to offer you comfort.
You are welcome here.

When Joy Comes Back Quietly

/ Baylee Snelling / 1 Comment

No one really talks about the part where joy returns —
softly.
Unexpectedly.
Almost like it’s knocking on a door you didn’t think would open again.

You’re still in the middle of it.
Still waiting on answers.
Still holding pieces of things that haven’t healed.

And yet…

You find yourself laughing — really laughing —
and it doesn’t feel forced.
You notice sunlight filtering through the trees,
and it actually stirs something in you.
You start to feel curious again —
about life, about yourself,
about what could still be possible.

It’s disorienting, isn’t it?
After so much survival,
you almost feel guilty for coming alive again.

But this —
this is what healing starts to look like.
Not a finish line.
But little signs of life
breaking through the cracks of everything that tried to bury you.

You don’t have to apologize for the joy.
You don’t have to explain the strength.
You don’t have to wait for perfect to begin living again.

This moment is holy.
This joy is allowed.
And this life — right here — is still yours.

Scripture

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
— John 10:10 (NIV)

Nothing Wasted 

/ Baylee Snelling / 1 Comment

I used to wonder if any of it mattered —
the long nights,
the unanswered prayers,
the pain I couldn’t explain.

I used to question
why I had to walk through certain things at all.
Why it hurt.
Why it was allowed.
Why it had to look like loss.

But slowly —
quietly —
I’ve learned this truth:

With God, nothing is wasted.

Not the tears no one saw.
Not the silent waiting.
Not the ache that made it hard to breathe.
Not even the seasons I thought had no purpose at all.

He gathers it all.
And somehow,
He brings beauty from it.

It might not look like I imagined.
It might not come quickly.
But His grace doesn’t leave things unfinished.

Even here —
in what felt like failure,
in what still feels tender —
He’s writing redemption into every line.

So I’ll keep going.
Trusting the One
who doesn’t waste a thing.

Choosing Peace

/ Baylee Snelling / Leave a comment

Bitterness waits for an invitation.
It’s always close —
easy to reach for, easy to justify.

It promises protection,
but slowly poisons what’s tender.
It hardens what still longs to feel.

Peace… peace is quieter.
It doesn’t shout.
It doesn’t demand.
It simply stands in the corner, patient —
waiting for you to turn toward it.

And turning isn’t easy.
Sometimes it feels like betrayal —
like letting go means it didn’t matter.
Like choosing peace means you weren’t hurt in the first place.

But peace doesn’t deny the pain.
It just refuses to let the pain decide who you’ll be.

It doesn’t ask you to forget.
It just asks you to breathe.

To soften.
To stay open.
To carry your story with gentleness, not armor.

And maybe today, that’s the only choice that matters —
not what happened,
not what could’ve been,
but what you carry forward from here.

Let it be peace.