Lance's Corner

People often ask me how I was able to keep moving forward after everything I went through.

The answer is simple.

My faith in God.

Long before I found myself homeless in California, my mother and my grandmother planted something in my heart that would stay with me for the rest of my life.

They believed in God.

They prayed faithfully for me and for our family, and they taught me that no matter what life brings, God is always listening.

Growing up in church gave me a foundation that I didn’t fully appreciate until I faced some of the hardest moments of my life.

When my marriage ended, after losing my little sister, mother and my grandmother, and after deciding to leave Colorado for California to focus on my mental health and start over, I didn’t know what the future would hold.

What I did know was that I couldn’t make the journey alone.

So I prayed.

When I arrived in California with very little, I continued to pray.

When I was sleeping on the grass in a park, I prayed.

When I woke up in the middle of the night because the sprinklers had soaked my clothes and backpack, I prayed.

When I didn’t know where my next opportunity would come from, I prayed.

Prayer didn’t instantly change my circumstances.

But it changed me.

It gave me the strength to wake up each morning and keep believing that my story wasn’t over.

During my time living in the park and later in the shelters, I also spent time reading the Bible. Along with Scripture, I read self-help books that encouraged me to keep growing, keep learning, and keep believing in a better future.

Those books helped strengthen my mind.

The Bible strengthened my spirit.

Together, they reminded me that I wasn’t defined by my circumstances.

I was defined by the person I was becoming through them.

Looking back now, I can see God’s hand in places where I couldn’t see it at the time.

Every church that served a meal.

Every person who showed kindness.

Every shelter that gave me a safe place to sleep.

Every opportunity to work.

Every door that opened when I needed it most.

None of those moments felt random to me.

I believe God was walking with me every step of the way.

That doesn’t mean I never struggled.

There were days I felt discouraged.

There were nights I wondered how much longer I could keep going.

But I never stopped believing that God had a purpose for my life.

Today, I still take God with me everywhere I go.

Not just when life is difficult.

Every day.

My faith reminds me to stay humble, grateful, and hopeful, no matter what challenges come my way.

When I think back on my journey from leaving Colorado, to sleeping in a park, to living in shelters, to finally receiving the keys to my own apartment I realize that I was never truly alone.

God was with me through every chapter.

If you’re reading this and you’re going through a difficult season, I want to encourage you to hold on to hope.

Your circumstances may seem impossible today, but they don’t have to define your future.

Keep believing.

Keep praying.

Keep taking one step at a time.

Sometimes God doesn’t remove the storm right away.

Sometimes He walks beside us until we make it through.

And looking back at my own journey…

I’m thankful He never stopped walking beside me.

Thank you for taking the time to read this part of my story. My hope is that it encourages someone who may be facing their own difficult season. If this post spoke to you, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Your story may encourage someone else, just as mine has encouraged me to keep sharing.