The ups and downs of life happen to all of us, but how we respond makes all the difference. When we face hard things, our emotions can be overwhelming.
In Psalm 119:28–30 it says, “My soul weeps and trouble weighs me down. Give me strength so I can stand according to your word. Eliminate faithlessness you find in my step. Be gracious and give me your guidance. I have decided to take the path of faith. I have focused my eyes on your regulations.”
When I’m discouraged, afraid, overwhelmed, or guilty, it’s easy to get stuck in my emotions. When that happens, I start doubting whether I can change—or help others change. I get so consumed by what I feel that I lose sight of God and focus on trying to fix or control things myself. Other times, I avoid, procrastinate, or distract myself with what’s easier to work on instead of facing what’s really going on.
Maybe you can relate. Regardless of what we’re going through, God can help us get unstuck. More than that, he can make us stronger in the midst of our emotions. God gives us the faith we need to face any challenge and see it like he does—an opportunity to grow.
Faith is a choice: a choice to believe in what’s possible with God and to live how he wants us to live. During hard times, instead of staying stuck in our emotions, we can remember that God uses hard times to make us stronger.
Hebrews 12:7–9 says, “Put up with hard times. God uses them to train you. He is treating you as his children. What children are not trained by their parents? God trains all his children. But what if he doesn’t train you? Then you are not really his children. You’re not God’s true sons and daughters at all. Besides, we have all had human fathers who trained us, and we respected them for it. How much more should we be trained by the Father of spirits and live?”
We can endure hard times when we have faith that God will get us through them—and that he will use them to help us grow stronger. God doesn’t necessarily cause our difficulties, but he does use them as opportunities for growth.
Our choices can bring hard times too. Ecclesiastes 9:11 says, “Time and chance happen to us all.” Sometimes life just happens—good or bad. We face physical challenges, mental health struggles, unemployment, and more. Other times, the stress we feel comes from choices we’ve made ourselves, like taking on a new job, goal, or responsibility that we prayed for but didn’t expect to be difficult.
And of course, there are the consequences of sin. Our sins affect ourselves and others. When I first studied the Bible, I saw the truth of who I really was. I’d been convinced I was a confident, loving, good person—but the Bible was like a mirror. I saw how much I’d been lying to my family and friends, hiding things, being selfish and self-focused. Even now, when I get anxious, I try to control my circumstances, and that self-focus ends up distancing me from the relationships I want to be closest to.
There are also pressures from the world around us—family expectations, career comparisons, relationship struggles, and social pressures. And then there’s the spiritual battle. When we try to do good, we face resistance. Darkness works against us when we’re trying to love or do what’s right.
So when something hard happens, how do we handle it? Do we let it harden us—by numbing out, running away, pretending it’s not happening, or getting bitter and blaming others or God? Hard times can harden us if we don’t meet them with faith to grow.
When we face hard things, it brings up emotions like fear, insecurity, discouragement, guilt, and loneliness. Those emotions can lead to unbelief. But God loves us like an amazing Father. While he doesn’t cause pain, he can and will use anything—even our own mistakes—to make us stronger.
Romans 8:28 says, “God works for the good of those who love him.” We need to choose to believe that God loves us and is the one who will make us stronger, no matter what we’re facing—even when we’ve “shot ourselves in the foot.”
Hebrews 12:10–11 says, “Our parents trained us for a little while. They did what they thought was best. But God trains us for our good. He does this so we may share in his holiness. No training seems pleasant at the time. In fact, it seems painful. But later on, it produces a harvest of godliness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
We become who we’re meant to be when we believe and embrace God’s training.
I remember in high school, I had a great basketball coach. During my junior year, he said, “We’re going to be a great team, but we’re small. Our center is only 6’2”, so we need to be in the best shape of our lives.” He trained us hard—so hard that some of us started throwing up from the workouts. But we kept going, and by my senior year we went undefeated, made the NorCal playoffs, and were even ranked tenth in the state.
We trusted our coach and believed his training would work out for our good. Because of that, he pushed us beyond what we thought we were capable of—and we won.
Now imagine if you allowed God to train you like that. If you trusted him completely, what kind of person would you become? What kind of impact would you have? How many lives could you change?
How is God training you right now? What areas of your life feel hard or uncomfortable? Those hard times might actually be opportunities to grow. Even if you feel stuck in sin, remember: the more you’ve struggled, the more inspiring it is when you change.
Each of us is meant to have an inspiring story of overcoming hard times and growing stronger.
Here are five simple things you can do with God to get unstuck and grow stronger:
- Gratitude makes us stronger. It reminds us of what God has already done so we can believe for what he’ll do next.
- Pursuing closeness with God makes us stronger. Making time for him helps us see past our emotions and circumstances.
- The Bible makes us stronger. Believing and obeying God’s Word trains us for every good work.
- Prayer makes us stronger. God helps us turn our emotions into faith so we can see opportunities even in hardship.
- Spiritual friends make us stronger. God puts people in our lives to help us grow—and he wants us to do the same for them.
When we live this way, we not only grow stronger but help others grow stronger too. As Hebrews 12:12–13 says, “So put your hands to work. Strengthen your legs for the journey. Make level paths for your feet to walk on.”
When we choose faith through hardship, our growth inspires others to believe they can grow too. God gives us the faith we need to face any challenge and see it his way—an opportunity to grow. When you fight to grow stronger and get unstuck, you’ll inspire others to do the same. Then together, you can live a life of impact.
