Feeling Discouraged? This Is for You . . .
A vase of salmon-colored zinnias rests on the dining room table. I stare at it through tear-filled eyes, feeling discouraged by the grind of life.
On one level, admitting to the discouragement feels like ingratitude. I have a life many women envy. I’m able to work part-time from home and spend most of my days caring for our three children.
On a different level, this work feels like a cycle of 15 tasks that will never, ever end. I wonder if I’m making an impact on the world, and this work feels too hard, too humble.
No matter where you spend your long days, you probably know about hard and humble work, too. Perhaps you’re feeling discouraged, too.
Feeling Discouraged?
I used to imagine my future life of fullness and abundance. I imagined kids who never got sick or talked back to me.
Setting aside passions like backpacking and traveling didn’t cross my mind.
I envisioned days spent lying in the sunshine along lazy rivers and never considered realities like separation anxiety, strep throat, and children who refuse to sleep through the night.
Maybe you had a vision for your future as well. You thought you’d chase down that dream until you grabbed onto it and made it your reality. You thought you’d marry that cute guy from the coffee shop, buy the big brick house at the end of the cul-de-sac, have few kids, buy a golden retriever, and live happily ever after, amen.
However, as you live out your actual life, it’s much different than you imagined.
Maybe you feel like you’re just trying to survive.
Maybe you miss the days when you felt like you were making a big impact for God. Your life feels quiet and hidden, harder than you imagined.
When You’re Feeling Discouraged, You Aren’t Alone in Your Humble Places
Friend, you aren’t alone.
Meanwhile, here is the best news: There is hope.
These quiet and humble acts of service are shaping you.
Keep going. God is using these hidden acts of service to transform you.
These quiet and humble acts of service are shaping you. Keep going. God is using these hidden acts of service to transform you. #transformation #humility Share on XKeep changing the diapers. Ring up another customer’s purchase. Grade another stack of papers. Write another report. Don’t stop folding the tiny washcloths.
In the meantime, keep watching for what God is doing around you. He is using your humble work to make you more like him.
God doesn’t usually choose the mountaintops of life to do the deepest work in your heart. He shapes you in the lowest places.
He makes you look more like Jesus when you humbly serve others.
Your quiet and unseen service is making you look more like Christ.
The more we look like Jesus, the more we start to tap into his joy, peace, and even his power. We become content where we are because we start to see the exciting reality that Jesus is with us and in us.
What Happens When We Embrace the Humble Work
Here is the best news: You step into the fullest kind of life when you learn to go lower for the sake of love.
Joy deepens.
Peace prevails.
God’s power works in and through you in the humble places.
Embrace humble places, and you will learn to pay less attention to outcomes and more attention to the moments along the journey. You’ll pay less attention to the applause of the onlookers and more attention to the still small voice directing you. You’ll worry less about what the world thinks, and you’ll start to live out of your true identity.
Today, I encourage you not to give up. Don’t assume that the humbling work of your days isn’t making an impact. You never know what God is doing to use you or how he is working through you.
A Free Devotional for When You’re Feeling Discouraged:
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God wants to work in your life to accomplish what you’ve been unable to do through willpower alone. Lean Into Grace: Let God’s Grace Heal Your Heart, Refresh Your Soul, and Set You Free shares practical ways to experience God’s freedom, healing, power, and presence in your life. Find this life-changing book for free on the Kindle Unlimited plan or for 12.99 in print right here. This book will transform your life and revitalize your relationship with the Lord!
Calling All Moms and Daughters
Additionally, my 12-year-old daughter, Bekah, and I wrote a mother-daughter devotional book to help mothers and daughters grow closer together while connecting with God. Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith includes 60 devotions with Scripture, commentaries from both of us, conversation starters, and even a shared journaling section. Multitudes of mothers, daughters, mentors, and younger women are being transformed by this book! You can buy your paperback or eBook on Amazon right here.
