Faith to Match the Rough Spots By Pastor Shari Stephens 0

Perhaps today you are feeling totally overwhelmed.  Maybe you have been struggling with something for a very long time.  You may feel like, what is the point of keeping your hope.  Or feel like, what’s the point of your faith.

These places come to us all.  They weigh on us and they have the greatest potential.  The greatest potential to propel us or the greatest potential to set us back.  The Holy Spirit wants to breath life on you today, a breath of fresh faith that can get you past a rough patch.

Let’s look at I Corinthians 10:13, it says,

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

This principal of God’s faithfulness is true for burdens, frustrations, and struggles as well.  Let’s replace those words in the verse. “He will not allow you to be burdened beyond what you can bear.  But when you are burdened, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

The way you endure is to do what the scripture tells us in, I Peter 5:7, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”  When you’re burdened, you give it over to him, you are no longer burdened.  You must trust Him to work it all out.  This remains true for frustrations, struggles, etc.

He will not allow you to suffer anything beyond what you can bear. He is not out to see his children crushed.  He is concerned about seeing his children conformed and made like him.  This process is generally uncomfortable.  It goes against your flesh, your way of doing things, your thoughts on the matter.  Rough places generally just make for an overall challenging experience.

But, if you can hold on, knowing that it will eventually work out for your benefit, just maybe you can make it through one more day.  Maybe the reason there is such a struggle in you is that you haven’t surrendered it to him yet.  Maybe you are still trying to fix it, figure it out, come up with a plan.  Maybe the challenge is that you haven’t simply let it go.  Believe me, if he can’t fix it, it can’t be fixed.

Trust the Lord, right now with the thing that hurts the most, with the thing that is the heaviest.  With the thing that causes you the most frustration and be free.  Rest in the fact that God is faithful.  He is standing there as your buffer saying what can and cannot get through to you.

He knows just how much faith you have, and if it gets through, that means you’re equipped to deal with it.  In other words, he knows you have enough faith to give it over to him, so don’t hold it. Let it go!