Something to be very thankful for

My faith is a ruling factor in my life and in many of the decisions that I make. I know you all see my "darker" side at times, but my faith in God is paramount. I'm not perfect and I am always a work in progress. As part of my faith, when we experience an answer to prayer, we should give thanks, and that's what I intend to do:

For the past little while a friend and I have been praying for each other. Specifically for God's intervention in our mutual and individual struggles. Over this past little while, I have experienced a lot of improvement in my health and in my level of fatigue. I have not felt this good in a few years. Why am I telling you all this? Well...I wanted to offer encouragement to those of you who might be praying for things and feel like those prayers are bouncing off the ceiling. God hears them. I prayed the past two and a half years for what has happened in these past couple of months. God had me wait so that someone else could be encouraged. He does that, you know. We have our limited patience and our what we feel is our "path to success," but sometimes He takes His time. It can be frustrating, very frustrating. However, looking back, I'm glad that my friend is able to receive boundless encouragement for how God answers prayer. Not only am I grateful for God's faithfulness, but also for my friend's faithfulness in praying for me. I only hope is that my prayers will lead to equal, if not more, blessings for my friend.

So what have I experienced the past two months? General improvement and I am a size lower in my clothes. Most importantly, over the past few weeks, I have experienced a surge in energy, I'm smiling again, I'm really focused, and my willpower has returned. Combine all of those really good things, and I'm the happiest I've been in at least two years. I am even walking better and with more speed. I am so very thankful for my friend's prayers, and I'm just feeling very blessed.

With all of this said, I realize some of you reading this do not share my faith. That's fine. It is your choice, completely. I just hope you receive some encouragement through my improvement.

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." James 5:16