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As any parent can tell you, there are a lot of unanticipated challenges when it comes to raising kids. Just as soon as you think you have a routine down and you are beginning to understand your child, they throw you for a loop. This doesn’t even take into account the host of difficulties that are introduced when your child begins interacting with other people. As they start establishing relationships it means that they will deal with their own expectations and their own disappointments, and as their parent you have to try to help them navigate the difficult road.

Raising children isn’t the only arena of life that comes with its surprises though. We might think things are going along fine when we are blindsided by a challenge we never even dreamed of. With all the time we spend fretting about what might happen, it’s the things we never consider that often knock us to our knees. We do a poor job of forecasting what the future may hold. When faced with a problem, we are often at a lost of what to do.

However, as I tend to remind myself, even if I am surprised by what I’ve encountered, God is not. He knows the good and the bad that will come into my life, and just like I should turn to Him in thanksgiving when I am blessed, I should turn to Him in trust when I am challenged. He is not unaware of the difficulties that I face. Even more so, before I was even aware that a problem existed, He has already provided what I need to glorify Him through it (See 2 Peter 1:3). He has a plan to meet my needs before I knew that I had them. The Great Shepherd leads His sheep by still waters and in the valleys of shadows and death (Ps. 23); He prepares the path that they will tread. Although I may be walking it for the first time, He has already gone ahead, ensuring I am equipped to do His will in the midst of the pain.

Knowing this should change my perspective when I am challenged by what life holds. When difficulties unbound and the way forward seems uncertain, I can trust that He knows where the path leads. I may not know what the future holds, but I know Who holds the future, and He has graciously promised that He will give His children what they need. I can trust that He will provide even if I don’t yet know how. As I do so, my focus ceases to be on the problem that is in front of me and is instead on the One Who has already solved it.

And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. – I Samuel 30:6

We’ve all had days where we are tired and weary.

Our endurance is gone. Our heart is drained.

The physical exhaustion doesn’t compare to the spiritual taxation. If we were simply worn out, we could sleep and be restored. But there’s a heaviness that’s greater than mere fatigue. We are burned out – in every sense of the word.

Yet on days like this, God is still on His throne, just like He was on the days where it felt like we were on the proverbial mountaintop ready to soar above the clouds. His eyes have not lost sight of us; His children are still firmly in His grasp. Even while we may think we are too tired to take another step, He is busy working out all things for the good of those who love Him according to His good purpose and plan (Rom. 8:28). While we falter, He is still faultless. We change with the seasons, the days and the months; He remains the same (Jam. 1:17) – faithful and true to the end.

It is because of this steadfastness that even we are weak, we can find our strength. Like David, who had to contend with far worse circumstances than we are likely dealing with (people wanted to stone him), our endurance is not found in our own abilities or talents. We can’t continue on simply by willing ourselves to do so – at least not in perpetuity. No – instead we must find our strength where David found his – in the Lord. And we shouldn’t just simply turn to Him and acknowledge His fortitude and power (although that’s a good start). We must strengthen ourselves in His might. Because He is strong, we shall not stumble. Because He is faithful, we shall not fear. Our hear is encouraged not only because He is strong, but because He is, so we may be too.

It is one thing to rely on someone else’s strength. We have all done this from time to time – whether it’s because we needed a jar open or because a heavy box needed to be carried. It is another thing to be strengthened in God – to find our perseverance in His power. When we are weak, we shouldn’t just acknowledge that God is strong and able to do all that He desires and give us all that we need. But we, like David, should be strengthened in Him, knowing that because all these things are true, we can endure.