Still Standing

A Smile Can Only Hide So Much We’ve all done it - smiled at someone, shook their hand, and said, “I’m okay.” But the reality is that we’re really not okay. Inside, underneath the surface, we feel like we’re falling apart because we’re fighting battles that nobody else may know anything about. And we push forward still carrying the weight and that smile is trying to hide so much. But the reality is that that smile can only hide so much. Eventually the weariness starts showing up somewhere. It shows up in our THOUGHTS, in our EMOTIONS, and in our REACTIONS, in our PRAYER LIFE, in our JOY, and in our WALK WITH GOD. You keep going because you know you should, but deep down you’re tired (mentally, emotionally, and spiritually). Weariness Isn’t Necessarily Weakness If that’s where you are right now, I want you to know something: just because you’re WEARY does NOT mean that you’re FAILING. We often view spiritual weariness as PROOF that something’s wrong, but the reality is that sometimes the weariness is simply EVIDENCE that you’ve been in a real fight. And the fact that you’re still standing at all is a testimony to the sustaining grace of God. Galatians 6:9 says, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.“ Notice that he didn’t say weariness would never come. He’s acknowledging that weariness WILL INDEED come. The issue isn’t whether or not you FEEL THE WEIGHT of the battle; the issue is whether or not you QUIT because of it. And here’s the danger: if we don’t deal with spiritual weariness, it starts affecting everything else. Your JOY FADES. Your PATIENCE SHORTENS. Your PRAYER LIFE and your DEVOTION TIME BECOME INCONSISTENT. Your CONVICTIONS START TO CHANGE (and not for the better) That’s why you cannot underestimate the importance of simply STAYING FAITHFUL. And the scary part is that most of the time it happens so gradually that you don’t even notice it until one day you realize you’re not where you used to be spiritually. Not because you REBELLED against God, but because you got tired and never stopped long enough to be REFILLED. What Staying In The Fight Typically Looks Like Faithfulness begins in the ORDINARY. It looks like getting up and praying when you don’t feel like praying. It looks like opening your Bible when your mind is exhausted. It looks like dragging yourself into church after a hard week when part of you wanted to stay home. It looks like choosing to keep standing when everything in you feels worn down. And can I say this honestly? Sometimes standing doesn’t FEEL victorious. Sometimes it feels like you’re losing because you’re still dealing with the same struggle, you’re still carrying the same burden, you’re still praying about the same situation. And that’s where the enemy loves to whisper lies to you - telling you that if God was really working, things would look different by now. But don’t believe that. The fact that you’re still standing isn’t proof that God has abandoned you; it’s proof that His grace has been sustaining you this whole time. Romans 8:37 says, “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” That means victory isn’t just someday AFTER the battle is over. God gives grace RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE of the battle, of the exhaustion, of the waiting. What Do I DO? So what do you do when your strength feels low? You don’t TRY HARDER; you STAY CLOSER. Start your day in His presence before the noise of the world fills your mind. Stay in the Word of God, because your feelings will lie to you, but God’s Word never will. Stand on the promises of God instead of standing on your emotions. God said He would never leave you, nor forsake you. He said that His grace is sufficient. He said greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world. Those aren’t EMPTY STATEMENTS; that is SOLID GROUND for a weary believer to stand on. And here’s what you need to remember: the ground beneath your feet isn’t moving. Your feelings may shift, your circumstances may change, and your emotions may rise and fall, but your position in Christ is SETTLED, SECURE, and UNCHANGING. God hasn’t forgotten you, He hasn’t abandoned you, and He hasn’t stopped working in your life. So if you’re tired, discouraged, and worn down from the battle, hear this clearly: KEEP STANDING. Not because the battle is easy - it isn’t. Not because you have it all together - you don’t. But because God is STILL FAITHFUL, and God is STILL WORKING, even when you cannot see it. Philippians 1:6 says, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”Song - Stand Your Ground