Encouragement for Today

April 3, 2024 Trusting Jesus in the Midst of Broken Dreams KAT SHULTIS Lee en español

“Then Jesus said, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?’” John 11:40 (NIV)

One afternoon, after a doctor’s appointment, I sobbed in my closet. It was my third season in a row as an elite runner with a new injury, and I was seeing many doctors each week to figure out my health issues.

My body was failing me, so I felt like a failure, even though I was working harder than ever to be healthy and happy again. It felt like all of my dreams for the future were crashing to the ground, along with who I thought I was.

My dad, who had heard me downstairs, came and sat with me in the closet, empathy in his eyes.

“Why me?” I asked him. “Why do I have to go through this?”

He replied, “I don’t know why, but throughout the Bible, God allowed His closest friends to experience pain.” Then he reminded me of the story of Lazarus.

Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, loved the Lord intimately. But when Lazarus got sick, the Gospel of John tells us Jesus waited days before going to Judea, and by then Lazarus had died.

“When Jesus saw [Mary] weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled” (John 11:33, NIV).

Jesus was moved by others’ tears even though He knew He would raise Lazarus from the dead. Jesus had told His disciples verses before, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up” (John 11:11, NIV). But He physically wept with the sisters before He performed the miracle.

“‘Where have you laid him?’ he asked. ‘Come and see, Lord,’ they replied. Jesus wept” (John 11:34-35, NIV).

By raising Lazarus to life, Jesus brought much glory to God. “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” (John 11:40).

That day in my closet, I battled to surrender my will. My desire for my running dreams to come true felt stronger than my desire to trust God. God was walking me through something deeply painful, but I just kept asking Him for a pain-free life.

Eventually I realized that while I didn’t want hard things, I wanted God’s will for my life and for Him to receive glory more than anything else. So I asked Him to lead me where I would need to fully trust Him, where I could not walk on my own.

Since that day, I’ve experienced a deepening sense of God’s goodness, kindness and love. God was always doing something in my life; I just had to trust Him enough to stay with Him through the storms. I’m praying you, too, can enter into this kind of trust even in your pain and disappointment. May we give our lowest for His highest.

God, thank You for loving us. Sometimes we must surrender things in our lives before You raise up something beautiful. Amid the hardships of this life, we say, “Lord, come.” We ask You to be with us in the brokenness we cannot understand. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

OUR FAVORITE THINGS

How do you set your eyes on heaven when your life has not turned out as planned? How do you walk through hard seasons of disappointment and learn to heal? Kat Shultis goes deep into discussing our identity in Christ — and how we can rely on Him for comfort, peace and purpose in all circumstances — in her book My Lowest for His Highest. You will learn to dance upon life’s disappointment and come out stronger on the other side.

ENGAGE

For more real-life encouragement, join Kat over on Instagram.

FOR DEEPER STUDY

Psalms 62:8, “Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge” (NIV).

When was the last time you asked God to bring you peace in a trying circumstance and took a second to breathe before turning to anxiety first?

What is one thing you can do today to surrender and trust God’s timing and plan in your circumstances? Share in the comments!

© 2024 by Kat Shultis. All rights reserved.

Proverbs 31 Ministries thanks Moody Publishers for their sponsorship of today’s devotion.

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