Sometimes the encourager needs a little encouragement and the caretaker needs to be taken care of.  Sigh.

For those of us who know these roles so well, asking for help is not easy.

The reason why is because we are used to relying on an endless wealth of joy and encouragement to lend to others, but what happens when our own well dries up?

Well, I can tell you from experience it’s a scary place where you feel like a fish out of water.  Worse, you feel like you are at a fork in the road with about a million paths to take, but none sound like the right one for you.

At this point, fear is your worst enemy because it whispers in your ear:

1. You will never get your joy back.
2. God is punishing you for your sin.
3. You deserve this.
4. There is something wrong with you.
5. No one else has ever felt like this.
6. This pit is too deep to crawl out of.
7. You’ve done this to yourself.
8. Everyone else has it together, why can’t you?
9. You’re never going to be okay again.
10. People think you’ve lost your mind.

Man, oh man…Satan sure has a big and loud mouth when we are suffering!!!!  YIKES!!!

The truth is that Satan is a liar.

Yes, we may be in a horrible place right now and completely depleted, but this is just one of many seasons we will face as we go through life.

Better yet, God has a wealth of promises that can help us overcome the mountain of fear that sometimes jumps on our back and refuses to get off during our times in the desert.  Some of these include:

He gives strength to those who are tired and more power to those who are weak.  The people who trust the Lord will become strong again.  They will rise up as an eagle in the sky; they will run and not need rest; they will walk and not become tired.  Isaiah 40:29,31

Jesus will keep you strong until the end so that there will be no sin in you on the day our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.  God, who has called you to share everything with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful. 1Corinthians 1:8-9

The Lord’s love never ends; his mercies never stop.  They are new every morning; Lord, your loyalty is great.  I say to myself, “the Lord is mine, so I hope in him.” The Lord is good to those who hope in him, to those who seek him.  Lamentations 3:22-25

All of these say to me that better days are on the horizon!  Halleluiah!

We may be defeated, but God will lift us up.  We may be sad, but God hears our prayers.  We may be confused, but God will give us wisdom and discernment.  We may be lost and lonely, but God will fill our God-shaped hole in our heart.

No matter where you are today, God will lead you through it if you’ll just ask Him to.

Some Wisdom for Today:  Proverbs 16:33 – The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.