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I’m excited to introduce a dear friend of mine as my guest today. Her name is Joyce Wolfe. She’s a fellow mom and life coach (you can read more about her below in her bio) and she has an awesome message of hope and life to share with you today. I know you’ll be blessed by her wisdom and truth.

With love, Sara Jane Kehler

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Dear Mama,

Are you feeling discouraged? Like you have no purpose? Like you’ve left a life of meaning and vitality behind and you’ll never get it back?

Maybe you yell at your kids or think you’re a bad mom.

Perhaps you have consuming negative thoughts about yourself or your situation or your future.

Do you look around and think you have no friends or family to talk to that will understand? Does it feel like you are the only one dealing with the anguish inside? Are you overwhelmed with the thought of doing laundry or making a meal? 

And to top it all off… do you also feel guilty for even having these thoughts or struggles?

Maybe you think…

• I “should” be able to be a good mom.
• I “should” be able to pick myself up every day and have energy for my home and family.
• I “should” spend more time with Jesus and focusing on the positive, right? If I could just get myself to do it…

Well, I have something I want you to hear today, my fellow mom in the trenches…

God Will Never Leave You Alone in Your Struggle

When you feel like you’re drowning and you can’t even seem to come up for a breath; when you don’t know where to turn; when your usual ways of coping aren’t working and you think you “should” be doing better than you are…. God sees you.

God sees you and He cares! Right where you are.

You know how I know? Because He saw me. In that same place. He saw that I couldn’t do it on my own. He saw that I was tired. Exhausted, really. He saw that I was still trying to reach out to Him although I didn’t know why He wasn’t answering.  

And step by step He walked with me. He took me by the hand and started walking through the tunnel with me. Side by side.

He told me He loved me.

He told me to not give up.

He told me this was just a season. Just a part of my journey.

He told me this was NOT part of my identity.

He whispered that I would get through.

God Carried Me Through to The Other Side of Anxiety and Depression

God is faithful.

He is the way.

He is my hope.

In the process of digging me out of the mire of anxiety and depression, God showed me “a hope and a future” (Jer. 29:11) and sent me a scripture passage that carried me into the next year and filled my heart and mind with unshakable HOPE.

He drew me to Isaiah 43:16-19 (NIV):

This is what the Lord says—
    he who made a way through the sea,
    a path through the mighty waters,
who drew out the chariots and horses,
    the army and reinforcements together,
and they lay there, never to rise again,
    extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
“Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.

Isaiah 43:16-19 (NIV)

Finding Hope in Isaiah 43:16-19

There are two things I LOVE about this passage:

First, who is saying this?

The powerful Lord who snuffed out the Egyptians like a wick!

The Israelites would have thought the Egyptians were going to be around indefinitely to torment them. They would never truly be free! They would always have the threat of slavery hanging over them even if God did get them out of Egypt.

Remember, they were backed up against the Red Sea with nowhere to turn and it must have seemed like the end…that slavery under the Egyptians was going to be their forever situation and that God must not be hearing their cry.

Sound familiar? A bit like your current situation?

But…God snuffed the Egyptians out. Just like that. In a matter of a few hours. This is the powerful God who speaks the rest of the passage.

Second, what is He promising?

God, who carried out this amazing miracle of protection and faithfulness for His people, with His sovereign vantage point, says,

“Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.

Isaiah 43:18-19 (NIV)

God reminded me that He is a Redeemer. That He already had new things planned for my life.

I wasn’t forgotten. I wasn’t without purpose. He WOULD make a way in the wilderness and I could already see the hope-filled streams He was providing when my life felt like a wasteland.

God Will Carry You Through, Too

So, my dear friend, if you are feeling like your life has been a wasteland, a desert, I hope this short time together has been an encouragement to you.

There is HOPE. It’s in Jesus.

You have PURPOSE. It was determined before you were created.

You are LOVED. With no expectations.

You are VALUED. Simply because you are.

You can have PEACE. Because of the One who is in charge and who holds you.

And these things are set in stone by the Most High, powerful, faithful Father who sees you and knows you inside and out, on good days and bad.

Let me leave you with one more Scripture:

He tends his flock like a shepherd:
    He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
    he gently leads those that have young.

Isaiah 40:11 NIV

He promises to lead us and He’s carrying our kids. He’s got you, Mama.

Please allow me to pray for you…

Lord Jesus, Thank you for your Word and how powerful it is. Thank you that You see us in our dark times and You lift us out. I pray you would gently lead each mother that is reading this today.

Would you, first of all, show her the streams you have created in the wilderness she is walking in right now? And help her perceive the “new thing” you are doing in her life, how you are redeeming her struggle. And on those darkest days, Jesus, I pray she would be able to feel your presence and know that she is held by the mighty God, Creator of the universe, Who snuffed out the powerful army of Egypt in one instant.

You can do the impossible. It is in You we rest and to You we choose to come with simple faith as we continue to walk through our valleys. We want to walk side by side with You. Thank you for Your love, hope, and peace that you give to us. Amen.

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If you have been longing for inner peace and are ready to be free from the consuming overwhelm and anxiety and ready to get your life back, please go to www.mannaformom.com/coaching to find out about my 90 Days to Walking in Peace program. I would be honoured to journey with you during this difficult season.

Sincerely,

Joyce Wolfe

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