In high school, I wasn’t the girl who chased popularity or tried to blend in with the “cool kids.” I wasn’t known for being super smart or even athletic—even though I tried. What I was known for was having my eyes fixed on something beyond the small town I grew up in.
I remember walking the halls and feeling like I never really belonged there. It wasn’t that I didn’t value people in my community—I did. But deep inside, I knew I was hungry for something different, something bigger than the life laid out before me.
I often thought about the “what ifs.” What if I had stayed? I probably would have wound up pregnant and married to a fisherman. That was the rhythm of life for so many in my town, and I say that not with judgment but with deep admiration for those who chose that path. There’s a beauty in raising a family, in planting roots, and in building a life in the place you’ve always called home. But for me, that life wasn’t what I wanted.
I longed for more. I wanted to see the world. I wanted to discover who I was outside the expectations of my community. And yet—if I’m being honest—I was also afraid. Afraid of the unknown, afraid of failing, afraid of stepping out and realizing I didn’t have what it took. But the desire to grow and stretch was greater than my fear… so I left.
Looking back now, I see how those choices shaped me. The girl who once felt like she didn’t belong is now a woman learning that she was never meant to “fit in” anyway. God placed in me a hunger for more because He had more planned for me. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11).
In this season of my life, I’m not chasing popularity or worldly success. My heart is more concerned with living authentically, loving deeply, and following the calling God has placed on my life. I see now that my hunger wasn’t just for adventure—it was for freedom, purpose, and healing.
I’ve walked through pain. I’ve wrestled with identity, with belonging, with family wounds. But through it all, I’ve discovered that even when I felt like an outsider, God had me in His hands. What I once thought was my weakness—never fitting in—has actually become my strength. Because I wasn’t made to blend in. I was made to stand out in the way He uniquely designed me.
And maybe that’s where you find yourself too. Maybe you’ve felt like you didn’t belong, like your dreams were too big for the place you were planted. If that’s you, I want to encourage you: it’s okay. God doesn’t call all of us to the same path. Some are called to stay and build, and others are called to go and explore. Both are beautiful. Both are needed.
The important thing is that you listen to the whisper in your heart—the one that nudges you toward the life you were created for. Abraham did this when God called him to leave his homeland and step into the unknown: “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.” (Hebrews 11:8).
That same God who guided Abraham is guiding you too. Your path may not look like anyone else’s, but it is uniquely yours—and it is filled with hope, promise, and His faithful presence.
A Prayer for the Journey
Father, thank You for the reminder that we are each created with a unique purpose. Thank You for the courage to step into the unknown, even when fear whispers louder than faith. For the one reading this who feels out of place or unsure of where they belong, I pray You fill them with the assurance that You go before them and that Your plans for them are good. Help us to trust Your leading, even when we can’t see the whole path ahead. May we walk in boldness, knowing that You are with us every step of the way.
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