Are you in a hard season right now? If so, you’re not alone, friend.
This morning on social media I posted an encouragement for anyone in a difficult season that seems like it will never end. So, before I jump into my blog post for today, I want to share a little excerpt from my post this morning. (You can read the full post on Instagram here or Facebook here):
That one big prayer I’m praying this year (and have been praying for a few years) hasn’t been answered the way I want it to be. Actually, some days, it looks like the tunnel just keeps getting longer.
My heart cries out like David in Psalm 13:1, “How long, O Lord?” How long until we are through this season? How long? I mean, it is just a season, right??
But then listen to how David ends Psalm 13: “But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me” (vv 5-6, ESV).
If you feel discouraged today, friend, cry out to God like David. Tell him your frustrations, your fears, how you’re feeling weary and discouraged and know that he’s listening and showing great compassion toward you.
But also remember, as David wrote, that even in those seasons when we want to give up, the Lord shows his steadfast love to us every day.
We can rejoice in the salvation we have received through Jesus Christ. We can praise God for the undeserved grace and mercy he has shown to us.
And we can still praise God for who he is and thank him for all the ways he has been good to us.
Friend, we may not see the ways the Lord is working right now, and honestly, he may not answer our earnest pleas the way we expect him to. But he will give us what we need to press on.
After posting this morning, I thought about how in challenging seasons we need encouragement to not lose hope that God will move in whatever difficult situation we’re praying about.
It’s easy when we can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel of a difficult season to start thinking that maybe God won’t move in our situation after all.
The longer we pray for God to move, the more we may doubt that he will actually do the thing we’re asking him to do. We become discouraged, and our frustrations and fears can begin to overwhelm us.
Maybe you feel like that today, friend?
If so, I want to encourage you to not lose hope that God can move in your situation.
I’m not saying, though, that he will answer your prayers exactly as you would like him to. In my own experiences over the years, I’ve had so many prayers not answered the way I wanted.
But I am saying that we can trust that God is working everything out for his glory.
Our God is sovereign.
Holy.
Good.
Compassionate.
Kind.
All-powerful.
All-knowing.
Always present.
He cares deeply for us and is concerned about the things that concern us. In long, difficult seasons we shouldn’t lose hope because we know that God is always working, even if we don’t see everything he’s doing behind the scenes.
We can trust him, friend. With everything, always.
Don’t stop praying for whatever you’re asking for just because it hasn’t happened yet. And if you feel discouraged, ask God to give you his sustaining grace to endure this difficult season. He loves you, and he cares deeply about you.
Pressing on in faith,
Jennifer