Undaunted by Christine CaineSample

We all land in heartbreaking places at some point in life, feeling sad, alone, and perhaps drained of our courage to hope again. The reasons can be a miscarriage, like I had, or something else entirely, like when… * your children grow up, move away, and never call * the company to which you’ve devoted your years downsizes, and you get a pink slip right along with the newcomer and the slacker * the man you love doesn’t love you back, and the marriage you thought would last forever doesn’t * the child you carried and couldn’t wait to hold is born with unexpected challenges * you are diagnosed with a disease or suffer an injury for which there is no relief or cure * colleagues betray you * investments dwindle * dreams shatter * best-laid plans go astray Any one of these let-downs can leave us devastated, in shock, sad, discouraged, and dismayed. Any one of these things can leave us withdrawing from life, retreating from the plans and purposes of God. And a series of disappointments can stop us from moving forward altogether, robbing everyone we might have touched with our influence had we been healed of our pain. After all, how can we help anyone else out of their disappointments if we’re stuck in our own? How can we convince others of the wonder of God’s promises if we are plagued with doubt ourselves? I knew I had to resolve my own heartache and questioning, especially if I expected to keep helping others move through theirs. If I expected to keep fulfilling my calling and all that might lie ahead. If I expected to truly live an undaunted life. But this would be a hard one to move beyond. Why is it that we can know in our heads that God has our good in mind, that he can redeem any and every circumstance, and yet still feel hugely disappointed and deeply despondent? The questions that arise in our hearts and minds are so real and, at times, gut-wrenching. We can’t help but wonder. Is God unfair? Unjust? No. He can’t be, even if it looks and feels that way from our perspective. The very definitions of justice we use to determine right from wrong came from him. His Word shows us who he really is. “The Lord is righteous in all His ways and kind in all His deeds” (Psalm 145:17). Is he hidden? No. Though at times he can feel that way. He’s promised us that he’s with us at all times, that we can’t get away from him. “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?” (Psalm 139:7) Is he silent? Not completely. We know from experience that in seasons when it feels like God is silent, we still have his Word that is full of his messages for us, messages of love and reassurance. Still, he promises us, “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known” (Jeremiah 33:3). If I was to move beyond the disappointment of this moment— despite all the questions that naturally arose in my heart—then I would have to remind myself of all the things about God I knew to be true, especially in the moments when they didn’t feel true. Adapted from Undaunted: Daring To Do All That God Calls You To Do by Christine Caine. Copyright © 2019 by Christine Caine. Reprinted with permission of Zondervan Publishing. All rights reserved.