How do we get through hard times?
How do we make it when it just seems like too much?
I know God doesn't promise an easy, trouble-free life, but sometimes it just doesn't feel possible to get through all that's going on at one time. And, if I'm honest, in those times, I wonder how I'm supposed to get through.
I share a few thoughts about this on my Facebook feed on Sunday night. I wasn't sure where it would go when I started writing it, or what the response would be when I posted it. But, what I discovered, is that I'm not the only one wrestling with this right now. So, I figured that after almost a month of no posts here, something on this topic would be a good way to start again.
I haven't posted here because I'm in the place I'm talking about and I haven't felt like I had anything to write about because of it. But, then I remember why I started this blog in the first place. Not because I intended to write about things where I had it all figured out, but to encourage others in their walks with God whatever it looked like. So maybe writing from a place of struggle is what I should do.
How do we get through hard times?
How do we make it when it just seems like too much?
I've been in the church long enough to know what the answer should be.
Cling to Jesus.
Read your Bible. Pray.
All good things. But, sometimes that doesn't feel like enough. When reading the Bible doesn't connect and your prayers feel like they're bouncing off the ceiling, the "right" answer, the church answer, doesn't feel like enough.
So, what do we do then?
First, I think we need to be willing to admit it. Just be honest and say that we're struggling. To ourselves, and hopefully to trusted friends too. There's something about saying it or writing it down.
Then, we need to reach out. Those trusted friends. Our church community. The people we do life with. We need them. They're the people God has given us to help us through the times we don't know if we can get through it.
And, probably the hardest part, we need to keep reading our Bibles, keep praying, keep being a part of church. It might not feel like something we want to do right now. It might be the last thing we want to fill our time with. But, keeping on will make a difference in the long run. It may be a discipline right now, but the day will come when it becomes a delight to do those things again.
