The other day I was reminded of a long-ago season of waiting, sadness and disappointment.

I don’t think about those years much anymore. Back then, though, the struggle I was engaged in affected significant aspects of my life and was never far from my mind.

Perhaps you’ve been there. Perhaps, like me, you find yourself there again.

My challenge is different this time, of course. It’s not nearly as personal or intimate, and yet it’s far more emotionally taxing, if that makes any sense at all.

There are things I tell myself when the going gets especially rough. I’ve mined these bits of truth from scripture, from the rearview mirror of my own life, from watching dear ones walk through trials far greater than any I’ve ever endured.

And as I share these thoughts with you today, know that I need to hear them too.

• You will not always feel how you feel today.

• It may seem like you are the only one who has ever been where you are right now, but you’re not.

• Somehow, you will get used to your new normal.

• You will find a way to live with what Ann Voskamp calls “your one broken heart.”

• Your current struggle will not always be the last thing on your mind when you go to bed and the first thing you think about when you wake up.

• When you come out on the other side, you will be changed. Don’t try to predict it; just expect it.

• The longer you live, the more times this process will repeat itself in your life.

• God will work out what you are going through for your good and His glory.

Day by day—whatever you do and however you feel—hold fast to God and His Word. Seek out His promises. Trust in His never-ending faithfulness.

Remember: He who has begun a good work in you will complete it. He will fulfill His purpose for you. He will not abandon the work of His hands.

He is with you. He is for you. He goes before you.

Always.

Rest in these truths, my friend. I’m resting right along with you.

♥ Lois