to be there for everyone,

and I forgot that I should

never ever leave myself.

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I think we’ve all had a season of our lives where we felt like we were in the valley and it was challenging to see what God could possibly have planned for us. Seasons like that can cause us to doubt and sometimes even fear for the future. We can lose sight of God’s promise whenever life takes a painfully unexpected turn. But I believe that, even if it’s hard to see from time to time, God knows what He‘s doing. I believe He’s looking out for each one of us (maybe even in ways we never could’ve imagined). I know I’ve been through the valley before. Here are 5 lessons I’ve learned. I hope they give you peace and assurance no matter where in your life you happen to be.

1. There’s a purpose

Nearly every trial I’ve faced during a dry season of my life has benefited me in one way or another. Now, it wasn’t always easy to see how it was benefiting me at the time, but that was where I had to really put my trust in God. I won’t lie. It was hard sometimes. But now, looking back, I can see that He was with me every step of the way, molding me, cultivating my character, making me holy just as He is holy.

The struggles I faced grew me in ways I never thought possible. They made me resilient and seriously strengthened my faith. But, more than anything I think, they taught me that we serve a God who will never give up on us even when we want to give up on ourselves. That made a huge impact on me.

2. God knows what we really need

Life can feel out of control sometimes. And I know there were moments when I felt completely overwhelmed and, truthfully, just kind of exhausted even thinking about the direction my life was going. I was letting my anxieties over the present state of things get the best of me and because of that, I wasn’t able to clearly see what God was doing through them—what He had in mind.

Often, we may be tempted to doubt how God could possibly use our circumstances to better us and make us into the people we were meant to be. We may even start to question His provision when things get dark and it’s difficult to make out the road ahead. But it’s my firm belief that just as God cares about the world as a whole, He also cares about you and I as individuals. He knows what we need even when we may not and He’s leading us ever onward towards the ultimate goal.

Sometimes, that means enduring tribulation. Sometimes, that will hurt. But that’s why it’s so important to constantly lean into Him and trust Him with our whole hearts. He has our best interests in mind, and we can be fully confident of that regardless of what the future may hold.

3. Trials teach dependence

Often, we have to come to the end of ourselves to learn to fully depend on God. And when it seemed confusion and doubt had taken the reigns in my life, I was left with no other choice than to turn everything over to the Lord and believe that He would do what was right and take care of things in His own way and time.

I‘m strongly inclined to believe that sometimes, God will allow us to go through trying times in order to bring us back to Him. He is truly all we need. He loves us with such an amazing love and His continual pursuit of us even when we’ve lost our way proves that.

4. We’re developing empathy

Not only has difficulty helped me become the person I am today, but it’s also equipped me with the ability to help others who are facing similar situations. Because of the things I’ve been through on a personal level, I’m able to really empathize with people who are dealing with the same things and offer advice based on my own experiences.

It’s such a blessing to be able to help others through my past struggles and I’d never be able to connect with them in that way had I never gone through some of these things. Our greatest trials can become life-changing testimonies that ultimately draw people closer to God (how incredible is that?).

5. It will pass

God may not always allow us to avoid the storms of life, but He’ll always be there with us so that we‘re strong enough to brave them. When the waters rise, He is our strength and our portion.

The Bible says to fix our eyes on what is unseen, because all the things that we can see are temporary, but what‘s unseen is eternal. I’ve learned to fix my eyes on God no matter the circumstance, because troubles will pass. Confusion will pass. Pain will pass. But God remains.