Faith doesn’t mean we stop feeling the weight of being human.

I think one of the strangest parts of growing through something hard is realizing you can be grateful for what God is teaching you and STILL wish you didn’t have to learn it this way.
Does that make sense?

Sometimes we talk about growth like it’s this beautiful process where we look back and see how much stronger we’ve become. And sometimes it IS!

But other times, or most of the time rather, growth comes with grief.

Maybe life looks nothing like you imagined. Something changed everything, or you’re learning to navigate a reality you never would’ve chosen.
OR this season is just plain out TOUGH.

But somewhere along the way, you’ve noticed that YOU are changing, too.
You have more compassion because you know what it’s like to hurt. Things that used to consume you matter less. You’re learning to ask for help, pray more honestly, + appreciate what you once overlooked.

You’re GRATEFUL for those changes, but part of you still wishes things could’ve been different. Or could be different, like right now

We need to make room for BOTH.
You don’t have to rush to find a silver lining in something painful or feel guilty for having hard days while recognizing God’s goodness.

I keep coming back to Jesus weeping at Lazarus’s tomb, even knowing resurrection was coming.
He KNEW what He was about to do and He STILL made room for grief.

Faith doesn’t mean we stop feeling the weight of being human. Spiritual maturity isn’t becoming unaffected by things that hurt.
It’s bringing our WHOLE selves to Jesus and allowing His Spirit to shape what those experiences produce in us.

We can become wiser without becoming cynical and more discerning without losing our willingness to love. Can we start normalizing acknowledging how hard life has been AND still expecting beautiful things from God??

There is goodness you haven’t experienced yet. People you haven’t met, prayers you haven’t seen answered, and ways God is working that you can’t fully recognize from where you stand!
You don’t have to pretend the past didn’t hurt to have GREAT HOPE for the future.

GROWTH IS SO HEALTHY AND SO, SO HARD.
That’s biblical 🫶🏻