Job stood up, tore his robe in grief, and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground and worshiped.
Job 1:20
G od is found at the end of yourself. When you are beat down, worn out, bruised and battered, God becomes everything. The less you can rely on yourself or your past success, the clearer and more impressive his presence becomes. When the hard times hit you often feel powerless, and with that there is less of you, and with less of you there is more room for him.
Prayer really takes wings and changes lives when it’s not about you, your problems, or your fears but instead it’s about him, his will, and his ways. At that point everything you want and even need fades to the background. You don’t need peace with where you are or how you feel. You don’t need to feel comfortable with who you are or with who people think you are because you know who he is. You’ll find some rest for your soul when you don’t care if you are distrusted, disputed, rejected, or shamed. When you come to that point, you have found all you need in the one who knows what it is to be misunderstood, doubted, and horribly rejected. Remember that the lack or trial in your life is nothing more than what millions before you and to come have experienced and will experience, and hardship is the fuel of faith. Faith proves itself in the hard times, not in the good ones. Faith is born and grown through stress and turmoil, not through ease and comfort.
Whatever junk you’re living through right now, just know that without this junk today, you might never find the need or passion for more of God. Don’t let this stuff be wasted on your soul. Let it scrub you clean of any hint of self-obsession and sweeten you with a pure and humble God-obsession.