Inside: Are your heart, mind and body worn down from a hard season that seems like it will never end? I’ve been there, and I have some hope-filled words just for you. ~
Hey there, you with the pinched brow and tired eyes.
It’s been a tough season, hasn’t it? I don’t know your specifics, but the effect those circumstances are having on your heart, body and mind? I think I can make some experience-informed guesses about that, and here’s what I want to say about it.
Don’t equate how you feel today with your worth, your usefulness, your attractiveness or your future fruit-bearing potential.
Perception is Not Reality
Contrary to what seems very real right now, you are not your feelings. You are not your season. You are not your trial.
Yes, you might consumed by it, tired of it, confused by it, frustrated with it, overwhelmed by it, possibly even angry at it. That’s the blunt, current truth.
But let me also tell you this. It will not always be the way it is right now.
Changing Perspectives
It may seem to you (and your loved ones) that your hard thing is all you ever talk about—all you ever think about—and maybe you are right. A day will come, though, when that is not the case.
Your circumstances may not change, but your perspective will. Ask anyone who has suffered great loss. The pain, the sadness and the scars may never fade completely, but life does go on.
Other parts start to fill in. The joy comes back, even.
What Happens Next
Then along comes another trial, maybe even harder than the last. The coping muscles that you developed last time will help some, but you will grow more—perhaps in places you didn’t even know strength could exist.
This process—let’s call it the circle of faith—is spelled out in Romans 5:3-4: “Affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope.”
God is still in the business of redemption, my friend, and your life is not exempt from His promises.
♥ Lois
Don’t equate how you feel today with your worth, your usefulness, your attractiveness or your future fruit-bearing potential. Share on X God is still in the business of redemption, my friend, and your life is not exempt from His promises. Share on XP.S. This post is adapted from a piece originally published in September 2017. I’m linking up this week with One Word 2023, Inspire Me Monday, #tellhisstory, InstaEncouragements, Let’s Have Coffee and Grace & Truth.