When It’s Hard To Continue Moving
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
(Isaiah 40:28-31)
Trying to remain free of addiction, oppression, or any situation that may have you chained to worry and fear can sometimes be a difficult walk. There are many obstacles we have to face on a daily basis that can slow us down or even knock us off the track a bit. There are days where the stress seems higher than normal and the needs of others seem more to the point we can’t even take care of our own needs. But this is where we have to take a moment to sit down, breathe and pray, asking God for the strength to continue. He will always give us what we need at just the right time.
I am currently in a situation where I’ve had to do this and I have had to do it many times in the past. When we hear others say “start your day off with God, prayer, reading the Bible” etc, they aren’t kidding! It makes a world of difference. I did this a couple days ago and not long after I prayed and towards the end of my Bible reading, my phone started going off with people needing things from me and situations I needed to take care of. This went on for more than 2 hours as I tried to take care of everything I needed to and leave the house. It continued periodically throughout the day. Compared to the day prior when I hadn’t taken the time in the morning with God, I got through this hectic day much better than the day prior.
God gives us the strength to continue moving when we don’t want to. He gives us that burst of energy we need when fatigue sets in and we just want to quit. He gives us the encouragement we need when we are discouraged and doubtful. He provides the courage we need to get through a time when we face fearful situations and strong enemies. He stands by our side, holding our hand, when the situation is so difficult we feel we just can’t take another step.
For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.” (Isaiah 41:13)
Whether it be in times of recovery or in times of difficulty and trials, we must not allow fear and stress to consume us and cause us to forget who is by our side. It’s easy to allow stress and worry to permeate our minds, but when we take the time out to pray and spend time with God, the situation doesn’t seem as big as it once had. And even if the mountain in front of us looks huge and immovable, we must remember what Jesus instructed us in Matthew 19:26:
But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Also in Matthew 17:20:
He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”
Sometimes in difficult situations we can tend to work in our own power trying to fix everything which only brings us to burn out and fatigue. But when we allow God to take over, we do what we have to do and He takes care of the rest.
What are you striving with at this time that you have not allowed God to take care of? What situation do you continue to come up against and fight in your own power instead of turning it over to God? Take a moment to breathe and then sit and spend time with God, allowing Him to fill you up with His peace and strength. Soon the stress will wash away, the mountain will become smaller and you will see things through clearer eyes.
Lord, there isn’t any problem or difficulty to hard for you to handle. There isn’t any problem you don’t have an answer for. I admit I have been trying to take care of everything myself and am now realizing it is too much for me. I am tired, I am weak and I am weary. Lord, I ask that you be my strength and grant me patience as I turn this situation over to You for You to take care of. I am afraid, Lord, so I ask for faith and courage to walk through this while you work on my behalf. Thank you Jesus for your love and your mercy. I ask this in the name of Jesus…Amen.