When we need to know God is in the middle

I hate the middle.

It’s that hard place where we get stuck between the start and finish… between conflict and resolution… between questions and answers… between giving up and persevering.

It’s the place where our spirit is stirred up, and our mind creates scary and painful scenarios full of what ifs and if onlys.

And honestly, it’s those unknowns we chew on while we’re stuck in the middle that make it almost unbearable because our deepest insecurities get poked.

It’s the ones that say we’re going to screw up again… that we aren’t worth the fight… that our best efforts won’t be good enough… that everything is our fault… that we aren’t as loved as we thought we were.

The middle can make us feel like we’re all alone.

… or rejected.

… or abandoned.

… or afraid.

And we find ourselves so desperate to get through the dark valley experiences of the middle that we try anything we can to escape it.

But so often the middle is necessary and good because it’s the place where God becomes so real to us. And since we have to walk it out alone, He becomes the only thing we can hold onto as we navigate that rocky path.

And it’s through that journey we discover that God is enough.

Even though I walk through the [sunless] valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort and console me.  ~ Psalm 23:4 AMP

So even though it feels soooo yucky…

Even though your insecurities feel mammoth…

Even though you’re looking for a way out of the pain…

Even though your heart is breaking…

And even though your fear is paralyzing…

… God is with you in the deepest, darkest moments.

His presence will protect you… guide you… comfort you… and console you. And it will bring peace to the middle when you need it the very most.