Freedom - Here’s to 2025

As I sit and reflect on 2024, I realize this year was filled with many firsts—both good and challenging. But I must admit, it was mostly good! From fanning out with my son at the Ravens football camp to moving to Annapolis (ranked as one of the best places to live in Maryland), the experiences have been unforgettable. I attended Maryland’s Small Business Awards dinner, PACA 2024—which led to a meaningful connection with the Director of the African American History Museum—and my first Donor Appreciation event, where I found myself sitting in front of the Mayor. I’ve been blessed to meet and connect with people who have a genuine heart for God. I also launched and completed the first season of my podcast!The list goes on!

Although 2024 was filled with new beginnings, it was also a year of endings—specifically the ending of cycles I had prayed and asked the Lord to deliver me from. When I first started seeking the Lord wholeheartedly, He revealed the generational issues in my bloodline and the battles I was up against. I cried out to Him, saying I didn’t want any part of it and asked for deliverance. I remember Him saying He would do it ‘bit by bit.’ At the time, I thought, ‘Bit by bit? You’re the Lord God Almighty—why can’t You just take it away instantly?’ But even with my questions, I submitted and committed to the process. That journey started in 2020, and while I haven’t been perfect (thankfully, perfection isn’t a requirement for God), I have remained faithful, obedient, and willing to be shaped through the process (malleable) 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

“Every test, every trial, every attack has led up to this moment. Romans 8:28 reminds us that God uses all things to work together for good, leading us to what He has predetermined and predestined for our lives. Jeremiah 29:11 affirms that He has plans to prosper us. I’m not saying I’ve ‘arrived’—we never truly ‘arrive’ in Christ. What I’m saying is that I’m closer than I’ve ever been to seeing the promises of God manifest in my life, and I am both humbled and grateful.

Maybe you don’t know what it feels like to witness events unfold in your life where all you can do is cry, ‘Lord, help me!’ It’s the moments where you’ve prayed, fasted, repented, and genuinely tried to do right, but those strongholds in your life feel relentless. You’ve prayed so much you don’t even know what else to say. (Thank God for the Holy Spirit!) If you know, you know. You question if God truly loves you, if He’s really there, and wonder how He could allow certain things to happen. Yet, through it all, He reminds you that He’s with you. And while you might ask, ‘Lord, do You see this? Do You see me?’ His response is always, ‘Hold on.’

We often shout, ‘God is just!’ when we feel wronged. But what about when He has us waiting while He undoes the messes we’ve made and breaks the chains that once bound us? It doesn’t always feel good, but His grace is sufficient. I often say, ‘God knows His business,’ because He does. He knows how to work in the duality of things, ensuring that all things work together for good.

So, I must say—I’m grateful for the ending of a thing. Freedom. 2024 was a year of significance, and I’m stepping into 2025 elated and expectant, ready to see all that God has been up to.”

More grace and blessings.

Johnathan McReynolds - Cycles

https://youtu.be/cXvkS1Tu68g?si=UDmE1CHMwNY4a8rn