“You know what this is?”
I raised my head from the table where I had dramatically flopped just moments before.
My dad rubbed his index finger against his thumb.
“This is the world’s smallest violin playing ‘My heart bleeds for you!’”
He chuckled at himself until I rolled my eyes and started laughing, too.
This scenario played out a lot in my teenage years.
When I bemoaned some insurmountable difficulty at school or work that threatened to disrupt my otherwise blissful life, I was met with sympathy and a good dose of reality.
“You know what? Life is hard.”
Usually, the situation worked itself out.
It wasn’t fun, but I got over it.
Along the way I grew to understand that life is not easy, but it does go on.
And giving up isn’t an option.
But as I became an adult, I found that problems got bigger.
More complex.
Heartaches intensified.
Dilemmas didn’t resolve.
Decisions were made, regretted, and made again.
I saw friends and family walk through dark days.
And I did, too.
As the years went by, I felt it even more strongly:
No, life isn’t easy.
And giving up isn’t an option.
So how do we get through difficult situations?
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Romans 15:4
Throughout the next few blog posts, we’ll dig deeper and focus on these three key concepts from God’s word.
Get a free sample of Persevere, an ebook devotional!
When you sign up for the free sample, you’ll also get KeyWords – a weekly devotional + writing update to your inbox!
