We cannot possibly count all of the moments when we’ve felt alone in this world. Our hearts have ached while our tears seemed to bounce off of empty walls. There was a pit in our stomachs, and sometimes we couldn’t really figure out why. To be frank, it really sucks feeling that way. Yet we all do, and more than once in our lifetimes.

Sometimes we get comfort knowing that others have gone through the same situations as us, while other times we think that no one has experienced the turmoil we are going through. It is true that all situations are different because every individual is different; but it doesn’t mean your situation is understood or sympathized with.

God is our best supporter when we’re struggling. Just because He’s is in heaven it doesn’t mean He isn’t here too. He is omnipotent and omniscient which means He is with us always, no matter where we are, and He knows what we’re going through. When everyone else’s door is closed to you, His will be open. He is always open to us; though sometimes we feel He is far away, He really isn’t.

Just because we can’t see Him doesn’t mean He isn’t there. When you go to bed tonight do you believe you’ll wake up in the morning? Why? You can’t see tomorrow, so why do you believe it is there? It’s just something to consider when you’re having doubts. God is always available; He never changes His mind that.

In our toughest times we are held up by God. The fact that we are alive when we feel beaten down is a blessing. He is our hope, even though sometimes we don’t see it that way. We are given grace and mercy under His love, and He makes sure to let us know throughout His Word.

The next time you feel discouraged turn your head to the Father. He is with you always, and is waiting for you call on His aid. He loves us more than any human ever could, including our earthly parents. Just imagining a love like that is still beyond our complete comprehension, but it is there and it is strong. We are safe and well in God’s arm; just don’t let others tell you otherwise and keep your head towards the hope, love, peace, and beauty of heaven.

There are many Christians who deny the calling of God because they are comfortable with being in their home and having all of their needs met on a daily basics. What if that one person hurting in another country could have been saved and set free because of you and what if you are holding them back from the plan of salvation? Isaiah 6:8 says: “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.” If you hear that voice of the Lord speaking and calling to you do not be afraid to go forth and answer yes. There is a reason why Jesus is calling you to serve him.

What if you don’t have enough money? When Jesus is calling you to serve him know that he will supply everything that you need. Sometimes it might not come right away and it might even come after the date, there are other times that you think you might need something but don’t. Trust Jesus to guide you and hold your hand while you are going out there to serve him.

When you are serving Jesus you don’t have to fly across the country to do it. You can start with doing things in your neighborhood. A lot of people are stressed these days for many reasons. Just because someone looks like they might have everything together does not mean that they do. Don’t be afraid to go up and tell them about Jesus if you feel that God is leading you to do so. Your words and testimony about Jesus could change them forever.

Exodus 5:18-23 – “Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks. And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task. And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: And they said unto them, The Lord look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us. And Moses returned unto the Lord, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all”. At first the Israelites where so use to their current condition that they could not see any miracles that could come. It took a leader and someone that had faith to help them come out of their situation. If Moses would have stayed in the comfort zone then God would have passed him over and picked someone else to lead the Israelites. It is understandable that Moses was at first confused and afraid. However, he quickly followed and obeyed what God was telling him to do.

If you feel that Jesus is calling you to do something then instead of just fearing, get down on your knees and ask for him to help you. Jesus will open up the doors if you trust and lean on him. There are times that we think we hear Jesus when we don’t. One day I was out walking because I thought Jesus said that there would be money on the ground so I walked and walked. I sighed and went back in. Later that day I got some money in the mail that I was not expecting to get and I was shocked. I knew that I was going to be getting money because I had faith but I did not seek Jesus and if I would have just asked him I would have known not to go out and walk for so long and neglect the chores that needed to be done. When you make mistakes and jump to conclusions ask for forgiveness and learn from it. Don’t let that be the cause of you not going back out again. While you are on your knees don’t forget to praise God and remain humble when you are being called to serve the Lord.

In Romans 5:1-2 it says: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” If we give everything to Jesus we will have peace and that makes our relationship with God stronger causing our faith to grow. Faith can come by prayer, thanksgiving and with reading the Bible. It says in Romans 10:8-11 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” When you pray close your eyes and listen to what Jesus says. Let him guide you through your day. Sometimes you might not hear anything and that is when you must have faith that God is there holding your hand and leading you through everything.

In Ephesians 6:10-18 it says: “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.” In order to be strong in the Lord and to fight the devil from his schemes it takes faith and we can only do that by listening to Jesus and obeying the word of God.

It is easy to start taking things for granted such as the Israelites did when Moses led them out of Egypt. At first he feared how he would feed them but then they started getting manna from Heaven. In Exodus 16:15 “And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.” God provided for them and as a result they got spoiled by the miracles. People think that you can get spoiled only by money, good clothes and other things but that isn’t so. The poorest of poor can still become spoiled and take things for granted. This will cause us to not be grateful for anything that we have. Pride can start dwelling in our hearts when we become spoiled. When pride starts coming up terrible things can happen. Job 40:12 -”Look at every proud man and humble him, crush the wicked where they stand.”

John 5:44 – “How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” That is exactly what starts happening when pride comes in our hearts. We neglect praise and thanksgiving because we start boosting to one another. How did the children of Israelites boost to one another? I am sure that they said things such as “We know it’s going to come, it always does!” or “We are never going to go hungry.” Instead they should have been saying “Praise God for the manna” or “Praise God, he always looks after us in our time of need.”

So while you are battling are even when things are going good still Praise the Lord despite whatever is going on. Show appreciation by just making simple statements of “Praise God for this battle”. When you start to praise him and show appreciation you will be amazed at how different you will feel.

The first step with gaining knowledge in the Lord is by reading the Bible each day. You should have a quiet devotion time with the Lord for at least 20 minutes. Most people start with either the book of Genesis and read the entire bible. Read the bible out loud if you really want to have a impact on the enemy.

The second step with gaining knowledge in the Lord is by prayer and fasting. You should fast only if you feel that God is calling you to it and then it should not cause problems with your work and other areas in your life. If you fast be ready to feel hungry but know that you are growing and getting closer to the Lord. If you have medical problems you should clear it with your doctor before fasting. Praying is something that sounds easy but yet so many struggle with or don’t find the time to do it. All that you do is talk with God and give him your needs/wants/struggles. Talk as if someone was in the room with you because he is and he is listening to everything that you are saying. You can pray anytime that you want and for however long you want. Jesus is there waiting for you to do just that.

The third step with gaining knowledge in the Lord is by thanksgiving and praise. It can be very easy to get caught up in feeling sorry for yourself because you are struggling with money. There are others who complain about everything but yet do nothing and because of that you won’t see anything positive come from it. Give thanks to God even when you are going through a hard time. Praise him for your clothes that you have on, for the roof you are under, praise him even when you are going through a hard time. It is hard to do sometimes but know that he loves it when his people praise him.

Reading the bible, prayer and giving praise plus thanksgiving should be done on a daily basics. Now Satan will try and discourage you from doing it but that’s why you should make up your mind that you are going to do it and stick with it no matter what happens.

The very first thing that you should plan on doing every day is read the bible. Satan will try hard to come against you and make it so you are not reading the bible. Every time you sit down and start reading it the phone will ring or either someone will come over. That’s why you should reserve time each day, turn off the phone, and ask people to not bother you or either call them back when you are done. Now there are some that can do around one hour of bible study while others don’t have that much time and only do half an hour. The most important thing is you are reading the Bible and learning about it. This will be your weapon in hard times and in order to grow strong in the Lord and fight off evil you must memorize scripture and be able to say it loud and strong. There are many good books in the bible that you can start off with learning, such as Genesis but most start with reading the New Testament books like Matthew, Luke, John and acts because it can help give a better understanding to Christianity.

When you are reading the bible and just starting out it’s always a good idea to have someone there with you. Having a bible partner can help with many things and the two of you can grow in the Lord together. Reading scriptures outloud and praying together can help calm down the spirit and reduce stress. Jesus says in Matthew 18:20 that when two or three come together in his name, he will be there with them. This will make your bible study time even more powerful and effective.