Seasons of Hardship Create Space to be Closer to our Creator - iBelieve Truth: A Devotional for Women - February 25, 2025

“Now that I speak from [any personal] need, for I have learned to be content [and self-sufficient through Christ, satisfied to the point where I am no disturbed or uneasy] regardless of my circumstances." Philippians 4:11-13 (Amplified)

In this verse, Paul talks about being content and at peace no matter what circumstances we are surrounded by. 

It goes without saying that this is very difficult, especially when life hardships weigh on us so heavily. 

I remember a season of need that was overwhelming to the point of sleepless nights and intense anxiety. Our family was in need financially and I was unsure how God would make it work. 

I was up at night, crunching numbers trying to make sense of the lack and how much more we needed, and it caused great turmoil in my heart and our home. 

However, a part of me almost appreciated the hardship because it caused me to cling to the Lord so tightly. I was in intimate prayer a lot more than I would have been if our income had been abundant. 

I was cherishing the times on my knees with big tears flowing down my cheeks. Although it hurt, I have never felt closer to the Lord. 

Perhaps you are in a season of need right now. Or a difficult circumstance is draining all of your energy and causing you to lose sleep. 

Life can be hard and Jesus promised that “in this world we will have trouble” (John 16:33), so we can rest assured that God is fully aware of all that we are going through but intends to use it for good. 

He understands the intricacies and nuances of our situation more than we do, so how much more is He going to work behind the scenes to bring redemption and provision?

This is what we need to remember when life's hardships get the best of us. God is bigger than our circumstances and can be trusted to work it for HIS glory and our good! 

Here are some practical ways you can draw closer to God when life is hard.

1. Spend the early morning hours (or anytime you can get alone) in prayer. Talk to God as if He was sitting right there with you in person. Imagine His loving eyes taking in your sweet, vulnerable words, and don’t be afraid to say hard things. God is not afraid of our difficult emotions. He welcomes them. 

2. Find Psalms of lament in the Bible that you can pray through as you spend time with Jesus. Psalms of lament urge God to intervene by God's character and history with God's people. Here are a few to get you started: Psalm 13, Psalm 22, and Psalm 42. Read them, pray them, and let your tears flow. 

3. Journal your thoughts honestly. Grab a new journal just for this season. Write out your prayers and requests for God and record all the answers that come. That way when another hardship comes you can be reminded of God’s faithfulness in your own life. 

Don’t be afraid to ask yourself hard questions. I find that if I am worrying then a part of my heart doesn’t trust God. Allow that to sink in and really ask yourself what parts of God’s character you aren't trusting. Ask God to help you with your unbelief. 

For me, I feared that because of my past financial mistakes, God was going to allow everything to be taken from us to teach me a lesson. Now, this may be how God disciplines us and maybe that would happen, but it wouldn’t be out of anger. If God did allow that to happen I would need to trust that there was a purpose in it. He wouldn’t just let us go without and forget about us. So I needed to get to a point where I surrendered all my fears of lack and trusted that even if that were to happen God would still be with us and would work it all for good. 

That is a hard place to get to and it doesn’t just happen once. Sometimes we need to surrender over and over. 

The verse that I have clung to many times in difficulties is “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

This is not a passive verse. It doesn’t mean to shove it all under the rug and try to forget about our struggles. It means to actively surrender all of our worries to Him. Pray out loud, allowing your voice to give over the things that hold you down with worry. Expressing to Jesus that you trust Him, you believe that He is bigger, and you look forward to watching Him work your difficulty for good. Instead of racking your brain with how to work things out, sit still in His presence, hands open, giving God your angst. 

I have experienced in my own life the freedom that comes from releasing it all to God. 

Remember that He is bigger. Hold on to that. Remember that and allow God’s peace to overflow in your heart. 

Recognize the closeness that you gain when you bring God into your challenges. As you journal, write out prayers of thankfulness not just about God working things out, but thank Him for His abundant and extravagant love for you. 

Let's pray:

"God, thank you that you created us, take delight in us, and want to be close to us. If you use difficulty to bring us closer to you, may we think of it as a love letter from you, asking us to draw near. This is the sweetest place to be no matter what is going on around us. We love you, Lord. Amen."

Photo Credit: ©Unsplash/Jeremy Perkins

Heidi Vegh is a writer, speaker, and ministry leader living in Western Washington. She is a remarried mother of four, navigating the blended family life after the loss of her first husband to cancer in 2013. She longs to use her writing as a way to encourage others who have experienced loss and guide them on the road to healing. She contributes to her blog found at www.mrsheidivegh.com , sharing stories and devotionals of faith stemming from her loss and healing, mothering, and her blended and complex family. She graduated from Southern New Hampshire University with a degree in Creative Writing and English and is working on her first book. Heidi is the Women’s Ministry Director at her local church and has a deep heart for sharing Jesus with women and encouraging them in their faith walk. When she is not writing, she loves to travel, read, craft, and experiment in the kitchen. Visit her Facebook and Instagram (@mrsheidivegh) to learn more.

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