Blessings of a Drippy Faucet: Using Life's Challenges to Become the Best Version of Yourself

By Dana Madeya

Have you ever wondered what this life is all about? Have the words, “What is the purpose for all of this?” ever echoed in your mind? Have you ever felt that there can’t possibly be a God because the challenges you face are impossible to overcome? Have you ever felt you must be a complete failure because you can’t seem to rise above your existing circumstances?

If you answer “Yes,” to any of these questions, this book is for you. Imagine for a minute that the circumstances in which you find yourself are the very thing that CAN and WILL help you to rise above. By following Dana’s journey, learn the Power of Discernment that will help you to become a better version of yourself…and rise above.

A portion of the proceeds of this book will build a program for at-risk youth

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Feb 20, 2024
• ISBN: 9798385003228

Dana Madeya

Dana Madeya is an emerging American Christian Author and devoted daughter of God. Despite being given a strong early foundation to develop her faith, Dana saw hypocrisy in her church that made her question that faith. Darkness set in and adversity consumed her. In the darkness, she sought after God harder than she ever thought she would. Her journey back to God would teach her how to overcome adversity and become the best version of herself for God’s glory.

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Copyright © 2024 Dana Madeya.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

844-714-3454

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0323-5 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0322-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023913332

WestBow Press rev. date: 02/20/2024

~ For Danny

I love you; I love you... I will always love you.

CONTENTS

Preface

Part 1: Becoming Spiritually Conscious

Chapter 1     Who Are We?

Chapter 2     What is This All About?

Chapter 3     Why are We Here?

Part 2: Becoming Spiritually Aware

Chapter 4     Our Journey

Chapter 5     Why is Adversity Important?

Chapter 6     Motivation for Change

Part 3: Becoming Spiritually Awake

Chapter 7     What Are We Truly Managing?

Chapter 8     Living Intentionally for Peace

Chapter 9     God’s Will–Our Call

Part 4: Becoming Spiritually Engaged

Chapter 10   God’s Specific Will–Our Purpose

Chapter 11   A Healthy Codependency with God

Chapter 12   God’s Specific Will–Our Miracle

Acknowledgments

PREFACE

For as long as I can remember, my parents raised me in a religious household. I enjoyed church, Sunday school and learning about God and His Son, Jesus Christ. As a young girl, the Holy Spirit was very strong within me. As I grew up, the static and distractions of life quieted that Spirit. As I approached adulthood, I saw hypocrisy in the church, and it soured my relationship with God. Eventually, I recklessly concluded that everything I learned must be a hoax; why else would leaders of a church break the very rules that were taught to the congregation? When sin in the church shook my spiritual foundation, I drowned the Spirit out completely.

The older I became, the more God tried to wake me from this distant slumber. I craved a relationship with Him. The scripture from Proverbs 2:26 says to train a child in the way he should go; even when he is old, he will not depart from it. I guess that is very true. Thank you, mom. Because of you and the connection I made with the Holy Spirit at that young age, I made the brave decision to (re) discover God. However, this time, I was going to discover Him on my own terms, in my timeframe, and at my speed. I would no longer rely on what seemed to be hypocrites from a church that didn’t follow their own rules. In my discovering God, I humbly learned that we are all hypocrites because we are all sinners. Even the leaders of a church sin because they are human.

Fast forward...

It was a Saturday afternoon in June 2006; I was lying in bed, feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. I was tired and was losing the will to fight the circumstances that seemed to have consumed my life. Little did I know that the reason I was feeling so defeated was because I was doing exactly that... fighting the circumstances.

To say it had been a tough year would be a gross understatement. I was a single mom of a 17-year-old son and hardships came at me from every direction in life. I was hanging by an emotional and psychological thread that was fraying and ready to break. Life had become one stressful event after another, and I didn’t know how to change course. I felt I couldn’t hold on much longer and wasn’t sure I even wanted to.

I had been on my journey of re-discovering God in my own way. When we seek God, we begin a journey that is far more than just knowing God. We begin the wonderful process of living His purpose for us. That means we will have a positive impact on others and potentially draw them to discover God as well. The closer we get to God, the stronger His presence is in our lives. So, the enemy (Satan) will do all he can to cause us as much trouble, worry and stress as possible to make us feel defeated. This is exactly what was happening to me on this day in June 2006 and why I felt so defeated. Satan’s goal is for us to abandon a God Who (seemingly) isn’t helping us. It is all lies, but I needed to learn this disturbing fact. It was the key to putting the challenges and troubles into proper perspective.

On that June afternoon, as I was lying in bed feeling hopeless, I received a phone call that would be the trigger to change my life. This phone call was to announce that someone I knew, who was deep in the throes of addiction, was in trouble. I broke down and cried. This person had so much potential and played an important role to someone that I love with all my heart. I saw this man’s love for his son through the current unfortunate circumstances. I immediately prayed after hanging up the phone. Burned in my memory, the prayer came genuinely from my heart...

God, I know I have doubted your existence over the years, and I have failed as a mother to educate my son about You, but I am here and need Your help. Please help Dan, Lord. He is in trouble and heading down a dangerous path. Help him help himself and please keep him safe. Let him find You and don’t let him die.

As soon as I finished the prayer, I got a vision... it was of a funnel of water swirling down a drain. I immediately thought about the man I just prayed for. Was this a vision for him? Was it to say he was spiraling out of control and about to be sucked down the drain? Along with the vision, thoughts that I could not control floated through my head. Words like: slipping down the drain, stop the downward flow. The thoughts kept coming: tub of Life, and the water is blessings. Before I knew it, I was sitting up in bed with my laptop opened and I was typing. The words just flowed from my fingers. By the time I was done, I couldn’t even believe it came from me. I just stared at the result, reading it repeatedly. Here is what it said...

Blessings of a Drippy Faucet

By: Dana Madeya

June 2006

Throughout my life, God has given me an abundance of blessings through difficulty. The blessings drip into my tub of life, one drip at a time, creating the energy and wherewithal to grow and develop into who I am today and who I will become. Over time, I have watched the tub fill with water, and occasionally I have allowed the water to drain, forgetting how valuable that water is to my spiritual growth. Each time I recognize the water slipping away, I know I need to act; I need to stop the downward flow. What happens to the blessings that are lost? Are they gone forever? Have I failed? Will God no longer bless me because of my wastefulness? As I wring my hands with fear, the faucet drips again; He still believes in me.

Soaking up the blessings bestowed upon me, I know that I have a lot of work to do to become the person I am meant to be. I want to fulfill my purpose for my ultimate success: success as a mother; success as a businesswoman; success as a daughter, a sister, an aunt; success as a friend. In this struggle for success, I focus only on my goals and forget about my success for God; the water drains again. I am tired and not sure I can overcome the challenges; I need help. I reach out for help from everyone in my life... everyone except for God, the only One who can give me the strength to conquer my fears, my struggles, my setbacks, and my disappointments.

Consumed by life’s struggles, I realize there is only a small amount of water left in my tub of life. I stare in pure amazement... where did it go? How did I let it slip away? As my eyes fill with tears, I feel overwhelmed, afraid, alone. I watch the water that is left swirl into a funnel. As it is about to flow down the drain, leaving me with nothing but a dry tub. I quietly pray, God, how could this have happened? I thought I was doing everything I was supposed to do! Please help me. I reach over to stop the drain, but it’s too late; the water is gone.

I cry from exhaustion and wonder what will become of me. Just as I am about to give up hope and admit defeat, a drip falls from the faucet, and I hear it bounce into the reserve of water in the drain. A wave of relief falls across my tense and weary shoulders; there is a reserve!! God is my reserve! Because of Him, I am never alone. He has an endless supply of blessings for me; I only need to look to Him and allow Him to shower me with blessings of love, peace, and joy.

When I thought I lost everything, that I had nothing left, that I could never recover from my loss, God showed me that with Faith and trust in Him, He will continue to bless me so that I can grow and develop into the person for whom God intends. I know there will be situations that will challenge my stamina and endurance, but I am not alone. I only need to fix my eyes on Him, and He will continue to help me grow, develop, and succeed.

Suddenly, I realized that this was not for the man I prayed for; it was for me! I reflected on what I can only describe as a message; a message given to me through my gift of writing, an open heart for healing, an honest prayer for a broken soul, and a strong desire to know my Heavenly Father. I called my mom and read it to her. She suggested I get it published. My response: Mom, I think this is only the beginning of something bigger.

Reflection

What (if any) are your religious beliefs?

What are these beliefs based on?

INTRODUCTION

My Story

Have you ever struggled with the life you were living? Have you ever felt that this life can be somewhat of a cruel joke? Have the words, What is the purpose for all of this? ever echoed in your mind? Have you ever felt that there can’t possibly be a God because the challenges you face are impossible to overcome? Have you ever felt you must be a complete failure because you can’t seem to rise above your existing circumstances? If you answered yes to any of those questions, this book is for you.

Now imagine that you get a second (or third... or fourth) chance to repeat your challenges in life so that you can overcome them, rise above them, and become a better version of yourself because of or despite the situation you are in.

Currently, my repeat challenge is a complete do-over as a single mom with very little control over my situation. The difference? My attitude is different. My perspective is different. Most importantly, my relationship with God is different. I no longer look at the challenges as obstacles. And I no longer look to others to help me fix what I can’t alone. I just keep looking to God and rising above. Let me explain...

At the beginning of my adult life, I found