Latest / Jo Watson: Unfiltered Faith / How Do You Hold On When You Can't Hold On?
Transcript
- How do you hold on when you cant hold on: Welcome back to Unfiltered Faith. I'm Joe Watson, and it's time to breathe. Time to slow down. Time to let your shoulders drop, and time to step into the sanctuary. Not the sanctuary we're all so familiar with, but the one that God is building inside you. Family, today we're stepping into Question that sits deep in the bones of every believer at some point in their journey. Not the easy questions, not the church-friendly questions, but the raw ones. The ones you whisper in the dark. The ones you're afraid to say out loud because you don't want to sound faithless. Today's episode is for the one who's tired. The one who's prayed until their prayers feel repetitive. The one who's waited until waiting feels like punishment. The one who's holding on by a thread and wondering if God still hears them. If that's you, this episode may give you some comfort. A listener wrote in with a question that many of you have carried silently. Their honesty is a gift, and I want to honor it by reading their letter in full. This is what they wrote. Dear unfiltered faith, how do you hold on when you can't hold on? What do you do when you're tired of hearing just wait on God? I've waited, I've prayed, I've tried to trust, but honestly I'm exhausted, and I'm not hearing anything back. Sometimes I don't need another God has a plan answer. I need to know what to do with the silence. What do you do when waiting starts to feel like losing hope? Signed someone who's losing hope. Dear someone who's losing hope, thank you for saying what so many believers feel but rarely admit. Let me say this clearly. You are not weak for feeling this way. You are human, and God is not offended by your exhaustion. The silence you're experiencing is not abandonment. It's not. Punishment, and it is not God ignoring you. Sometimes God's silence is the classroom where trust is taught. Sometimes his quiet is the cocoon where strength is formed. Sometimes his stillness is the space where he prepares what you prayed for. But I want to give you something deeper than cliches. Here are some truths you can hold on to when your hands feel too tired to hold on to anything at all. Number one, when you can't hold on, God holds you. Isaiah chapter forty one verse ten says I will uphold you with my righteous right hand and Not you will uphold yourself, not try harder, but God says I will hold you. two silence is not absence. Psalm forty six chapter ten says Be still and know that I am God. Stillness is not emptiness, it is awareness and It is God working beneath the surface. Number three, waiting is not losing. Isaiah chapter forty verse thirty one promises they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. Waiting is not weakness, waiting is strength training. And number four, exhaustion is not. Is not failure. Even Jesus grew weary. Even Elijah collapsed under a broom tree and said, Lord, I've had enough. And God didn't rebuke him, he restored him. You are not losing hope. You are being invited into deeper hope. The Spirit of the Lord is saying, I have not forgotten you. I have not abandoned your prayers. I am stretching your faith so I can enlarge your future. The silence you feel is the sound of me building what you ask for. So hold on, because what looks delayed is actually being delivered. Some of you listening tonight are closer to breakthrough than you realize. Some of you are standing in the doorway of answered prayer, but you're too tired to see it. Some of you are being strengthened for the very thing you ask God for. So hold on, not because you're strong, but because God is faithful. I want to stop here and pray. I want to pray for every listener who is tired of waiting and pray for every listener who feels hope slipping away. Let's pray. Father, we lift up every weary heart listening today. Every believer who is tired of waiting. Every soul who feels like heaven has gone quiet. Lord, remind them that you are near. Remind them that you are working. Remind them that you are faithful. Strengthen the hands that are trembling. Restore the hope that is fading. Speak peace into the places where silence feels heavy. Jesus, you said, Come to me all who are weary, and I will give you rest. So today we come and we receive your rest. Amen. If you are listening today and you have never given your life to Jesus, or maybe you're in a season where you walked away and you're ready to come home, this moment is your moment. Jesus is not intimidated by your exhaustion. He is not disappointed in your questions. And he is not frustrated by your waiting. He loves you. He wants you and he is calling you. And if you want to make him Lord of your life, pray this prayer with me. Lord Jesus, I come to you tired, but I come. I believe you died for me and rose again. Forgive me, restore me, and make me new. I give you my life. And I trust you with my future. Amen. If you prayed that prayer, welcome home. Find a Bible teaching church near you, somewhere you can grow, learn, and be surrounded by people who will walk with you. You don't have to do life alone. And if you are carrying a weight that feels too heavy to hold, please remember that this podcast is not a substitute for professional therapy or pastoral care. Reach out. Get the support you need because you deserve that kind of care. And if you would like to send in a question or share a story with unfiltered faith, You can reach us at Joe Unfiltered Faithpod dot com. We would love to hear from you. Your testimonies and your experiences matter. They help others grow. They encourage weary hearts, and they draw people closer to Jesus. Until next time, Family Unfiltered Faith. God is moving, so stay ready. And to God be the glory.