Trusting God When You Are Tired Of Trying
“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
I have drawn you with unfailing kindness."
Jeremiah 31:3
That morning, I picked up my phone off the nightstand with dread. Anxiety filled me at what I knew I would find there - other people enjoying their lives while I cried about mine.
Lord, am I going to feel like this forever?
I made a mental list of what I felt like I could no longer handle: battling relentlessly with my mental health, juggling two kids under 5, my husband’s unforeseen job loss, the sudden passing of my father-in-law, and ongoing financial pressures - just to name a few things.
There was no relief in sight, and it was hard not to feel frustrated, fed up, and forgotten by God. My soul was exhausted, and I was tired of trying. It seemed I had prayed every prayer I knew how to pray and studied every scripture about my circumstances. And yet nothing seemed to change.
Maybe you know this season all too well. You’ve been hurting deeply for so long. You expected to handle this better, to be stronger when everything came crashing down. But it’s OK that you’re feeling weak and unsure. God wants you and me to let go of having to figure it all out and instead let Him do what He does best: save us.
In the Old Testament, the Israelites never expected their freedom journey away from slavery to take so long or be so hard. But God took them through the wilderness to teach them dependence on Him and ultimately bring them into the good land He had prepared for them.
In reference to that time, the Lord said: “The people who survive the sword will find favor in the wilderness; I will come to give rest to Israel.” The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.
(Jeremiah 31:2-3).
God hears our cries for deliverance. He has grace for us in our wilderness.
As I walked through my own wilderness, I realized that all the things I thought were breaking me, God was using to make me more like Jesus. I was exhausted because I believed it was all up to me. But as I chose to trust God to hold my broken heart and I received His grace each day, He revealed the good plans He had all along.
Will we dare to remember the heart of God when we don’t understand why He’s not fixing our most hurtful situations? Will we trust that we’ll find grace in our wilderness? Will we believe that God has rest for our worn-out souls and that He will never stop loving us?
Regardless of how we feel, we can stand in confidence that God will continue to be faithful.
Lord, thank You for hearing my exhausted prayers when life feels like it’s just too much and I’m desperate for solutions. Help me to hold on to You in faith and to stand on the truth of who I know You to be: a good, faithful, and loving Father who always has my best in mind. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
- Ashley Morgan Jackson
Provided by "Proverbs 31 Ministries"
Jesus Wants You To Know...
"Most of your fear stems from pondering bad things that could happen - leaving Me out of that imaginary scenario. This is a very harmful practice; it is also an exercise in unreality. Although your future stretches all the way into eternity, there is not even one second when I will be absent from you. . . Whenever your mind wanders into the future, make the effort to include Me in that imagery. See Me helping you, strengthening you, encouraging you. Instead of being intimidated by tough times ahead, view them as adventures that you and I together can handle."
"And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed." - Deuteronomy 31:8
- "Jesus Lives" by Sarah Young
