You Are Supposed To Feel Lost In Your Twenties

By

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “Not all those who wander are lost.” It has been shared by travelers all over the world for years. I often come across this quote and it wasn’t until about the thousandth time seeing it that I realized some of us are lost.

Some who travel — or wander — are indeed lost. And that’s just fine.

About a year ago, I was quickly approaching graduation and I was beyond lost. I had absolutely no clue what I wanted to do. I had no job. No job prospects. No boyfriend. And no idea where my life was going.

I had friends landing their dream jobs. I had friends getting engaged and married. I had friends moving to new cities. And I seemed to be standing still with no idea which way to go. I was lost.

Nothing was holding me back (which sounds cool, but is actually terrifying). So I chose to move abroad to teach English and it has been, without a doubt, the best decision I have ever made.

A year later, honestly, I am still a little lost. I still don’t really know what I want to do with my life. I still don’t know where I’ll be in a few months. I still don’t have a boyfriend.

But I have learned more about myself in the last six months than I think I did all of college. I have learned where I don’t want my life to go. And I know that I am that much closer to figuring out what path I want to take.

If you’re anything like me, the future stresses you out. The not knowing. The possibility of failing. All of it.

I think we put so much pressure on ourselves to make a plan that we sometimes forget that a plan has already been made. Your plan, my plan, was all written long ago — probably before you or me even existed.

He had a plan for us. He still does, and He always will. So stop worrying about being lost. Stop worrying about your next destination. Stop worrying about your next job or your next relationship or your next promotion. Because those things have already been written by the Lord, Jesus Christ.

This isn’t intended to imply that traveling is going to magically solve all of your problems or give you all of the answers you have been looking for (because, spoiler alert, it won’t).

And it’s not intended to encourage you to sit back and wait for God’s plan to just happen to you (because, spoiler alert, that doesn’t work either).

What I’m trying to say is that, if you are lost, it’s okay. If you don’t know what you want to do yet, it’s okay. If you’re 23 and single, it’s okay.

Some of us have it all figured out and some of us are a little lost. If you are in the latter category, I’m here to tell you that you’ll get there.

Actually, ­we’ll get there.