This post is for you who have already cried out to God for years for help but the obstacles won’t budge, difficulties keep piling up, you’re feeling worse and thinking you just can’t cope anymore. How to persevere when you’re at the end of your rope, you ask. Let’s try to find some morsels of hope for you to keep on keeping on.

First of all, you need to know you’re not alone, God has not abandoned you, he is right with you in your suffering. You might feel alone but that is not true. God is always with you and he loves you more than you can ever know. Do not trust your feelings in this, trust the Word of God. Because endurance, encouragement, and hope are offered to us in God’s Word.

Second of all, I hope you’re not trying to get through this alone. Seek help from other people, professionals, and, most importantly from God. Plead and cry, let God know your true feelings. He will hear you and he will carry you through. Faith makes miracles, you know.

Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7, NRSV,*)

How to persevere

Third of all, your situation can be awful but it does not define you. Instead, God defines you. You are his beloved child even when things get tough. And life is tough. Your joy or hope is not in easy living, they are in God. That’s why you can learn to rejoice even at the end of your rope.

Fourth of all, keep an eye out for God and wait for good because God is good. God’s resources are deeper than you can imagine. You don’t have to understand how things can ever work out, God knows. Just trust that God will take care of you. God is a good Father and you can trust him. When your resources are exhausted, God gets ready to use his.

Lastly, know that the only way you can persevere is by God’s strength. You can’t do it but God can. That is our hope. Moment by moment we trust God to see us through. Sure, it’s not fun to wait when things are tough. But the more time we spend in prayer, the more wisdom and guidance we get to move forward. This too will pass. There are better things ahead.

May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. (Col. 1:12-13, NRSV,*)

Gracious God,
You see how tired we are, how awful we feel about things in our lives.
We surrender them and ourselves to you.
Do miracles, Lord, show us the way, be our way.
Thank you for never leaving us alone, let us feel your presence.
Fill us with your grace.
Pour out hope upon hope, enable us to persevere, especially when we are at the end of our rope.
Thank you for always taking care of us and loving us.
Bring us home to you.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: Do you know how to persevere? Share your best tips!

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you keep on keeping on! God is with you and he will see you through this.

Photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash.