Have you ever had a difficult season in life? One when you wondered if you would make it through? Thing after thing after thing happens. You fall deeper into darkness, praying that one ray or glimmer of light won’t fade, because you’re not sure you will survive if it does. Life deals you one terrible hand after the other, and you’re about to fold.

These past few years, that was my life. Around every corner, I faced one trial after another. If something could go wrong, it did. My marriage was tested. We went through a variety of issues with our kids. A couple of family members passed away. We had a layoff. I had to take work outside the home for the first time in several years, and that led to more kid issues. I’ll tell you about some of these throughout upcoming posts.

How did I make it through that difficult season in my life?

I looked up and chose to live.

Every one of us needs something that brings us hope.

For some, it’s a person. It’s time off, a vacation. Or, it’s faith. For me, it’s Jesus. My relationship with God.

We all have something or someone we live for. And when we feel that is taken away, we lose interest in life. Depression sets in. We don’t want to get out of bed in the morning, because we anticipate that one-more-thing may happen, and we don’t know if we can face one more thing.

Which is why my faith is so important to me. Why my relationship with God comes first in my life.

Without hope of salvation, without faith in the Lord, I wouldn’t be able to face what’s lurking around the corner.

My marriage wouldn’t survive. I would worry myself to death concerning my kids. I’d give up on my dreams. Everything around me – all the circumstances of my life – would overwhelm me. Take control of my life. Pull me down.

When I spend time with the Lord, reading His Word, praying, listening for His voice, it brings me a peace that passes all the understanding I have. I can look at life and not feel the overwhelm. Solutions I never saw before become clear. I can learn how to have joy in place of sorrow or frustration or disappointment.

Does that mean I never experience fear, overwhelm, frustration, depression, or any other negative thing?

No. I still face those every time.

But I don’t have to linger there. Instead of looking around me and letting those things control my life, I can look up at my Savior and live.

Thankfully, in God’s time, things turned around. My life is a complete 180-degrees different than it has been for the past four years. Since March, things have improved tremendously.

And that’s how things in God’s kingdom work. Things feel like they are taking forever, we’re challenged on every level, and we wonder if life is ever going to give us lemonade for all the lemons we’ve had to suck on. And then, one day, success comes. But we recognize that it’s taken a long time to get to that overnight success.

How do you make it through the difficult seasons in life? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below!