Faith in Hard TimesSample

Yet will I rejoice in the Lord

It would be nice if life was always easy. Unfortunately, that’s not how it goes. Things don’t go to plan. We win, we lose and everything in between.

In my life, I’ve known hardship through infertility, financial issues, relationship issues, mental health challenges, loss of friends and family and the list goes on. Hard times are part of the tapestry of our life. We’ve all known the kind of hard where it sits heavy on your chest before you even get out of bed. And in that valley, God doesn’t always hand a quick fix or an escape plan. He offers Himself.

In church recently, we sang this old song from when I was growing up: ‘Though the fig tree does not blossom and there be no fruit on the vine, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food. Though the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stall. Yet, will I rejoice in the Lord…’ Faith in hard times isn’t always loud. It’s not standing tall and quoting verses like you’re winning. Sometimes, it’s whispering ‘I still believe’ with tears on your face and dirt on your knees. It’s choosing to trust when trust feels fragile.

Our faith isn’t proven on the mountaintop. It’s refined in the fire. And God? He’s not absent in the dark. He is Emmanuel – God with us – even when everything else falls away.

If you’re walking through your own valley today, don’t be ashamed of your wrestle. Just keep showing up. Keep holding on. You’re not alone. He is faithful in the fire.

Written by SUSIE HOLT