we can't, but He can...

"Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later." - Romans 8:18

Sometimes we have to go through hard stuff, painful stuff. Sometimes, we don't even know it's about to happen, but God, our all-sufficient, omni-present God, knows what each moment holds, and just because we don't think we, ourselves, can't make it through the hard stuff doesn't mean that He can't.

Twice a year Scout has a vet appointment and each time requires shots. I hate it for her. The only good thing about these dreaded appointments is that she has no clue what's scheduled. Until the shot is being administered, she's completely unaware of her situation. Well, I take that back, she gets a little concerned as she sits on the table in the exam room. She knows something is going to happen, she's just not sure what. But we're in there together, and so she just keeps her eyes on me. She gives me that, "Please hold me because I'm not sure what's going to happen here" look, and I always wish there was some other way she could be treated without needles.

Today, Scout made it through three shots. Three tiny needles poked into her skinny, little neck. It was rough, not just for her but for me, too. I certainly don't enjoy seeing her scared or hearing her cry. I so badly wanted to take those shots for her, but it wouldn't have done either one of us any good had I, and so I kept saying, "You're doing so good. You're going to be okay. You're almost done." It was my poor attempt to keep her calm and reassured. If she could talk, she probably would have said, "You think this is okay? Why don't you let them stick you in the neck three times and see how you feel about it." But she just watched me the whole time as the vet tech held her tightly. She didn't take her eyes off of me, and as soon as they were finished, she made a beeline for me. She curled up into a tiny ball in my lap, and we were both glad that was over and done. Painful moments don't last forever, but they certainly can't end quick enough.

Sometimes life catches us off guard. We are blindsided with really difficult moments, and there's no way around them. We simply have to walk through them, through the pain and the suffering, and it hurts. It's the kind of hurt that brings us to our knees and we cry out, "Okay, that's enough. I can't handle anymore. Please make it stop." We wonder if we'll be able to endure it. Can we keep going? Is it going to get worse? When will it be over? Why us? Why do we have to deal with this? What did we do to cause this, to deserve this? And yet life gives us no answers, at least not ones that we can understand.

But we keep our eyes on Jesus.  On the author and the perfector of our faith. Because we don't walk through life alone. It may seem like it, and it may get scary, but he is there. Every step of the way, he is watching. And although there's pain, we have to trust that he is going to use it for our good. We might not know how, but he does. And we may think there's no possible way to get through it, but he'll find the way. So we don't stop watching him. We don't turn away or shrink back. We don't give up or throw in the towel. We trust him. We look to him expectantly and we say, "Okay, Jesus, I don't think I can do this. In fact, I don't really want to go through this. But I know that you have a plan here and you wouldn't put me through any situation that you won't work out for good. You keep your promises and so I'm choosing to believe that. I don't know what it will look like, but I know that you won't let me down. Even in the pain, even though I'm scared, I trust you. You are the only one with the answers because you are the answer. Help me, strengthen me, because you are my only hope. You're the only one who can help me through this."

And he will. Trust him. He is for you. He is on your side. If our God is for you, then who can be against you? The tough moments don't stand a chance in his nail-scarred hands. You can't make it through on your own, sweet one, but with Jesus you can. He can carry you through anything that comes your way, and he's always more than glad to.

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." - 2 Corinthians 4:17-18