Life Is Hard But...

I know, I kind of left you hanging there. Stick with me though, and we’ll finish that statement together.

I think we can all agree that there are seasons of life that are just plain hard. These seasons can last for just fleeting moments, and they can last what seems like a lifetime.

And your hard season can be radically different from my hard season. There are people, in our own community, that are hurting, dealing with addictions, suffering from loss and heartache. If you are reading this and you can identify with this, I want to bring you some hope today. Let’s start with a word in the title of this article. Let’s start with the word “but.”

The word “but” in that statement lets us know that there is hope beyond the hardship. The word “but” tells us that the story isn’t over yet. It doesn’t minimize the hurt and pain you may be going through, but what it does do is, hopefully, change our focus. It points to the future and not the past. It says there is more in life than hardship, and it lets us know that the season of hurt will change. One little word says so much about what you’re going through. It’s not going to stay that way. It doesn’t have to stay that way. No matter how dark life may look right now, things can change for the better, and you can get through it!

Here’s how I know that’s true.

My family has been through some stuff. We’ve been through hard seasons that seem like they last forever. We’ve experienced tragedy, we’ve experienced pain, we’ve experienced dark valleys. We’ve lived out some hardship in life. And while our “hard” isn’t the same as yours, it doesn’t change the fact that at times, life is hard.

So like I said, we’ve been through some stuff. We’ve experienced some difficult things. But…

I don’t want to leave you hanging much more, but let’s first get on the same page and recognize that we are not alone in this life. Everyone goes through hard things at some point. We need to surround ourselves with people we can count on to lift us up when we are down. We can lean on each other during the dark times and celebrate with each other in the joyful times! As alone as we feel sometimes, the truth is that we were never meant to live this life alone. And I think the more we go through things, and take the risk to allow others to support us in the things we go through, the more we will appreciate the good, positive people in our lives! I encourage you, if you’re going through some stuff, reach out and talk to someone about it. Don’t keep it stuffed inside. Trust me, if we keep stuffing away our feelings, our stress and anxiety, eventually it will get to the point of being totally overwhelming and can lead us to darker places. Talk to someone.

Ok, so here’s the payoff to the teaser I gave you in the beginning. I think we agree that at times life is hard. I hope we can agree on the rest of the statement.

Life is hard… but God is good!

I’ve learned over the course of my life that there is no greater source of joy and love than God. I don’t know where you are in your life journey, but my hope is that you take the time to include God in your life. I’ve tried going through the hard things without Him, and I’ve gone through hard things with Him. I can tell you from personal experience that there is no greater way to finish the sentence.

Because He is closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24), He will never leave us or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6), He loves ALL of us (John 3:16), and His promises are always true (Exodus 6:6-8).

I could go on and on, but instead I want to leave you with this. It’s a bit of a challenge. Trusting in God can seem risky. Take a chance, take the risk and pray and ask God to show Himself to you, who He really is. I promise you that a life lived for Him is worth the risk, because He is the one who gives us the hope to say life is hard…but…