Struggle...Nobody wants to be associated with it, yet it is in the forefront of most of our days. So much that the term #thestruggleisreal has become a commodity to normalizing struggle in our everyday life. This isn’t the most comforting normalization (to always have struggle) but the truth often is, that for most of us, there is always something that we wish could be different. It could be a situation, a relationship, a job, our attitudes, our finances, our schedules, our responsibilities, etc. It is a extremely scarce moment when we find ourselves in a place when ALL things are ALL going right at the same time. But being in a struggle doesn’t always have to mean that things are bad or wrong, it just might mean things are not where you want them.
For me, I have been through many struggles. Some small and some huge. Currently, I am faced with the struggle of having a hard time getting my body to work as it should in order to get pregnant again. I have been in and out of the infertility office for almost 6 months now. Honestly, it gets hard and disheartening at times, often finding myself feeling victimized by my circumstances and left with so many questions of ‘why”
A struggle is defined as a forceful effort to gain freedom from restraint. For the sake of identifying your own struggles, I want you to look at the areas in your life that you feel restraint. What holds you back, ties you down from being the person you want to be, or having what you believe you should have? When you recognize the restraint you can also recognize if you have labeled it as a “permanent situation” or a “temporary issue”. If your captivity is a permanent situation, it means that you have learned to tolerate it. You, whether you realize it or not, have accepted lies as truth. If what I was going through was just my situation, I would most likely begin to accept the “fact” that “I may not have anymore kids.” But I don’t believe that’s God’s plan for me. When I CHOSE to accept my situation as a temporary issue I then ENGAGE in “The Struggle!”
When we label our bondage as a permanent situation, taking on the “it is what it is” mindset, we do so because of the underlying fear of the EFFORT it will take to struggle with our restraints. But “what it is” may not be what it is suppose to be therefore not settling would mean entering into a struggle. Struggling means fighting! It would mean that you would hold tight to the truth that there is something greater for you and that God’s words over your life are true!!! You may be in captivity but you are NOT a captive. And as a son or daughter of Christ, when you enter into a fight, the outcome is already determined, the victory is yours.
The bible says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
When I read this I recognize a key to unlocking a whole-hearted purposeful life. I want to go to bed at night knowing that today I fulfilled purpose as a daughter of Christ. Unfortunately, I don’t always feel like that. I feel like I am fighting to get there. I am pushing through the struggles and I am seeking a freedom in fearlessness. “Mature and complete” sounds like a great place to be. But you see we don’t get there without trial. And trial alone won’t get us there either. We must persevere. We must struggle through until we reach the awaited, predetermined, victory on the other end.
When I see struggle this way, it actually seems to be something I WANT to partake in. Sure, I’d rather not have it. But if I have yet to reach mature and complete, then, to me, it is the far better option than not struggling. Because to not struggle would mean to get stuck.
I would even like to think that God doesn’t even see it as a struggle. I’d like to suggest that struggle is simply our perception of trial. I’d also like to believe that what we see as a struggle, God see’s as a strategy. Strategy originates from the greek meaning of generalship. Generalship is the practice of using military command. Military command is used to generate approved plans to win wars or maintain peace. So in other words, our struggles are a part of the approved plans of God to draw out victory in our lives!!! Now that is something to meditate on!
See God has more for you than you can ever imagine. There is purpose on your life. You may have in you the ability to change lives, invent something no one else can, raise a son or daughter who will change the world, invest in opportunities to advance God’s kingdom, etc. In fact, there is probably no way to specifically list what you are suppose to do for the Lord because it is so unique! So for every struggle you have, remember and recognize, behind it is a divine strategy.
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 says, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
Yall, I could jump out of my seat with excitement as I type this blog! YOUR TROUBLES are ACHIEVING FOR YOU ETERNAL GLORY! The intangibles, the things that bring heaven to earth, the things that build Christ’s kingdom and give Him glory, that is what your struggles are producing! A peace that can’t be understood, a wisdom to do the unthinkable, a gift to change the world, a Godly, flourishing relationship...these are the types of things that your struggle is being used for. You can’t see it. All you can see is that today was hard and question why this is happening to you. But remember, it is only temporary. It is one assignment, one battle, that will lead to winning an ultimate war. Peace will come. Purpose will be endured. Freedom will be lived, all, here on earth. So if you’re “struggling”, don’t lose heart, it means that God has put a strategy in motion to allow you to reach maturity and completeness. There is a victory he wants to see you receive and the struggle is just the process to the blessing.
So praise him in your struggle. Don’t accept it as permanent. Don’t get stuck in a jail cell when the key is in your hand. Keep fighting.
The struggle is there so that you can achieve what only God can give. The victory has already been won and #TheStruggleIsRealButSoIsTheStrategy
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