As I walk through my challenges, and spend time with the Lord in His Word, I believe that the best way to weather hardships is to embrace them.
Embrace is defined online as: “an act of accepting or supporting something willingly or enthusiastically.”
Well, at first glance I bristle at the thought that I should accept or support my challenges willingly or enthusiastically.
But God has a lot to say about our challenges, our attitude toward them, and their ultimate benefit to our lives.
Please take time to ponder the following verses:
1 Peter 5:10: “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”
Romans 5:3-5: “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
Romans 8:18: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
James 1:2-4: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
Psalm 34:19: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”
John 16:33: “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
2 Timothy 3:12: “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”.
Philippians 3:10: “That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death”.
What do you understand from these verses about suffering?
I glean that God’s best comes my way when I embrace my challenges, rather than spit and sputter about them. I have far to go on this!
I glean that God’s best comes my way when I rejoice in my challenges, rather than bemoan them.
I glean that God’s power WILL deliver me in and through my challenges.
I want to be a recipient of God’s best!
I want to lean on Him and abide in Him more than I do.
Praise God that He is so generous with His forgiveness, mercy and grace, so that I can learn from my sinful choices, and walk more intimately with Him through my challenges.
How do we embrace our struggles when it’s our kids who are reviling against us, or our coworkers are lying about us, or our family is antagonistic toward us, or there is another stressful situation?
How do we embrace our struggles and have joy in the midst of them?
These are some ways God is helping me to turn from hurt, anger, or other ungodly emotions and responses to ones of peace and joy:
God chose me for His own – “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.” John 15:16
Jesus experienced earthly struggles and rose above them, so He can help us rise above ours – “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Hebrews 4:14-16
In these verses from Hebrews we learn that Jesus is our great high priest. As such, He is with our Heavenly Father, and His power works for our benefit as He conducts “business” with the Father. He is also in us through His indwelling Holy Spirit, whose power works to comfort and encourage us in our times of trouble. He is sinless, so He can help us sin less. He allows us the opportunity to come to His throne of grace, confidently, for the help we need to better manage ourselves through our troubles. Jesus patiently endured His trials, so He can help us do likewise.
There are so many other promises in God’s Word that we can lean upon so that we can embrace our struggles and rise above. Take heart! We have a sovereign God who loves us, and wants to walk closely with us through all the issues of life. Will you take Him up on His offer to help you?
Matthew 11:28: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Will you come to Jesus, now? He wants to have a personal relationship with you. Jesus wants to be your best friend.
If Jesus isn’t your best friend, then you will not truly be able to embrace your challenges. I’d enjoy talking with you further about this. Please contact me at: ButGodCares@gmail.com if I can help you to have a personal relationship with the one true living God.
Living for Jesus, Donna
P.S. If this has helped you, please share it with others!
Note: If the verses for Bible references do not appear when you hover over them, go directly to the website, and they should appear for you. Also, please remember to look at the full context of the verses by reading the complete passage.
Copyright 2025 Donna Shappy All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other – without the prior permission of the author.