Isaiah 40:29 “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.”
When life is unfolding in hard ways, it can feel difficult to understand why God would allow hurt upon hurt or heartache on heartache. We often pray to God begging Him to fix the hurt or pain. Wondering, what good could possibly come from the darkness?
The last few months have had several dark moments and tragedies. One of my very best friends passed away, a family member I never truly had the chance to know passed, and my cousin passed away. Death. Something we all know will eventually come but we never think it could be the very next second. We always think we have forever… until we don’t.
What do depression and anxiety look like? Who is presently dealing with it? Me. The one who hears all the time “You always have it together and are always smiling.” The same person who hides the pain and never shows the darkness. The past year has brought so many valleys that it was hard for me to see the hills. But thank goodness for Jeremiah 29:11 (“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for peace and not evil, to give you a future and a hope.”) and God’s constant reminders of the lessons and plans He had for my life during this trial.
One lesson to be learned during our darkest times is we should place our focus on figuring out the entire picture of what He is painting instead of choosing to see the limited visibility of what part we are placing our focus. There are better times ahead. God has a plan regardless of our current circumstances.
Genesis Chapter 2 talks about the creation of man. God chose dust to breathe life into and create mankind. Think about that for a second. Out of all the materials… He chose DUST. We were created by dust and dust we will be once we leave this earth. However, dust doesn’t always mean “the end.” So often it can be the sign or ingredient for a new beginning.
Have you ever stopped to really think about the hard, dark times in your life? Have you ever witnessed the “dust” forming something new or becoming a beautiful outcome? Has it ever been a testimony of God using this trial to help someone else or be a teaching lesson for how strong He truly made you? Sometimes “dust” from broken pieces can be used to create:
Something New
Something Beautiful.
Something Stronger.
Something Larger.
Something that needed to be restored.
A way for us to let go of something that needed to be let go.
I still cry over things that have happened. Grief is devastating no matter how it comes. We cannot edit the reality to try and force a certain healing. The more that the pain consumes us, the more it will control us. It is necessary for you not to let pain rewrite your memories and it is absolutely necessary not to let pain ruin your future. Human hearts are prone to cover things up, but we should look for the rainbow after the storm and truly trust God’s plan during the darkness.
If you are facing darkness, a trial, pain, heartache, or fill in the blank, I truly pray you look to God for healing and comfort. For He is the ultimate healer and the hand that will pull us out of the darkness. Relying on God must begin all over again every day.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6
Lacie 