A Job-like Season

I have some friends who are struggling through a Job-like season right now – a time when everything seems to be coming against them and they can barely keep their heads above water.  Constant change.  Constant uncertainty.  Constant stress.  Exhausted and destabilized, they are struggling mightily to hang on to anything resembling hope.  And in the midst of all the chaos, trying to conceive.

Where is God in all this?

The Bible says He is “our refuge,” “our strength,” and “an ever-present help,” but He doesn’t feel ever-present to them.  Never-present is more like it.  They can’t seem to find any refuge, and they are running very low on strength.  So, now what do they do?

God Calling, the devotional book I discovered on vacation, has the answer:

“To see Me, you must bring Me your cares and show Me your heart of Trust.  Then, as you leave your cares, you become conscious of My Presence.”

If they want to find the refuge, the strength and the help God offers, these are the steps to take:

1)      “…bring Me your cares…” – Vent honestly; Job did.  Take every hurt and heartache to the One who is always ready to listen, who never resents your need or refuses you compassion.  He is waiting for you – hoping you will choose Him over whatever comfort you might seek (and fail to find) in the world.

2)      “…and show Me your heart of trust” – Don’t dump your problems and run; stay long enough to show God your desire to trust Him, despite your circumstances.   Let Him see in your heart a longing to look past this moment’s struggles, and a choice to believe in what you know about His character, His faithfulness and His love.

3)      “Then, as you leave your cares, become conscious of My Presence” – Hand Him your burdens.  Release your grip and let them go.  Give them to Him as a trust-based offering.  As you do, you will find yourself able to turn your focus away from them and toward His presence.  That shift of focus may not last long at first, but keep repeating these 3 steps.  You will become increasingly aware of His ever-presence.  And in that realization, you will find the comfort and hope you cannot find anywhere else.

When I went through a Job-like season, I got so desperate I was willing to try anything.  Virtually everyone and everything I’d assumed would comfort me failed to, sooner or later.   Only God never failed.  That realization — tested and proven in trial by fire — was the great blessing of the season.

My friends are in the process of receiving the same blessing.  Although they can’t see it, I truly believe it.  Suffering is a door none of us would ever choose to open.  But sometimes, it leads us straight to the heart of God.

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Do You Trust God Enough to Rest?

This summer, I needed rest desperately.  Exhausted by two years spent writing, editing, publishing, teaching and (constantly) blogging for Pregnant with Hope, I needed time to slow down, rest, and fill the well.

As I contemplated a season of true rest, a part of me worried, “What’ll happen if I stop?  Will people stop reading the blog and disappear?  Will book sales bottom out?  Support groups die off?  Site traffic slow to a trickle?  If so, will all my effort have been wasted?”

With the benefit of rest-induced hindsight, I can see how I-centric that thinking was.  But at the time, I was so caught up in hurry-hurry-hurry-push-push-push that I didn’t realize my initial obedience had morped into something more like obsession.

Does anything about that ring a bell?

If so, it might help you to hear what slowed me down and let me rest:  a devotional book I discovered on vacation titled, God Calling.  First published in 1932, this unusual little book is a series of conversational revelations – messages of hope and love given to two struggling women during a season of worry and fear by Christ himself.

The first time I picked up the book, I read, 

“Rest is trust.  Without the knowledge that I am working for you, you cannot rest.”

As I let those words sink deep into my spirit, I felt myself exhale for the first time since launching Pregnant with Hope.  I began thinking….  Trust is an either/or.  I can’t “sort of” trust people; ultimately, I trust them or I don’t.  It’s the same with God.

Can I trust God?  I believe so, yes.  But, do I? Sometimes, without realizing it, my actions reveal to me that I’ve lost sight of God as I’ve shifted my focus to my goal.  To rest in the knowledge that He is at work — in me, through me, for me — is to restore Him to His rightful place as the center of my focus.

Either I trust Him to breathe life into this ministry, to guide my steps, to take my offering and do something amazing with it — or I don’t.  It’s not a feeling; it’s a choice.

Having remembered all that, I recommitted to choosing trust.  To putting God at the center of this story.  Right there in the middle of a Florida bookstore.  And for the first time in ages, I began to rest.

It’s the same thing in a season of infertility.  Either we trust God’s timing, His goodness and His purposefulness – or we don’t.  If we do, we can rest.  We can let go without fear of losing ground, or missing the perfect moment.  If we don’t, ceaseless activity and constant worry will be the clear evidence that we’re trying to do this all ourselves.

Are you incredibly tired?  Desperately in need of rest?  Do you wish you could trust God enough to let go?  If the answer is yes, don’t be afraid to take a breather.  He won’t stop working for you – and trust me, you’ll be amazed at how much better you feel.

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For more help and reasons for hope, visit PregnantWithHope.com