There has been a word that has been coming to mind often in the last year. It’s something that God showed me a few years ago and I have recently needed the reminder.

Our family has had a lot of medical challenges in the last few years. These challenges came so back-to-back for a while that those around us started asking questions that ranged from “Are you aware that your family is under spiritual attack?” to “Is there unrepented sin in your life that is causing all these bad things to happen to you?” The problems differed from smaller things like months of battling bed bugs in our home to every member of my family besides me being hospitalized in the period of one year. 

It was at one of these times that I was feeling especially at the end of my rope. My 5-year-old had just gotten released from the hospital for a delicate hand surgery from an accident and our 8-year-old was now not recovering from flu like symptoms and needed to be taken to an ER for fluids while we were in a foreign country (different foreign country than the foreign country we were living in - Praise the Lord for international health insurance!) I looked up to the Lord and said, “God, you got to give me something here. What can I learn in this situation? Give purpose to this please.” And one word came to mind followed by a Bible verse… endurance.

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.” Romans 5:3-5

That helped me tremendously in that moment! My daughter was still sick, we still didn’t know if our son’s surgery had successfully reattached his fingertips, and I had no idea of the painful circumstances that would come next, but God gave me purpose for the pain and peace for that moment. His peace and purposes help us overcome the fear that holds us captive.

So I want to invite you today to take another look at that Bible verse in Romans 5:3-5. Highlight, underline, circle the words that jump out at you. And take a moment to let the truth of that last line soak into your heart today… “For we know how dearly God love us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love.”

You are loved and you are not alone.