Overcoming challenges is no easy task. Thankfully, we are not alone in our struggles. The Lord is always with us, and He will help us overcome any challenge that we face. What might look like a mountain to us is a flat road for the Lord. Whenever we are facing a challenge, we have two options. Either we can run away from the challenge and carry on with our everyday life or we can face the challenge head-on, knowing that the Lord is on our side.
If you are facing a challenge today, here are five biblical ways to overcome it:
One biblical way to overcome challenges is to be a prayer warrior. This phrase is often overused in the modern day, but the concept of a prayer warrior is very biblical. All of us as Christians should be active in prayer every single day of our lives. Prayer is one of the many things that brings us closer to God. Through prayer, we can talk to God, pour our hearts out to Him, bring our needs before Him, and praise Him for all of His goodness (Philippians 4:4-7). Even in the midst of our pain, we can still praise God because He is with us.
Being a prayer warrior will help you to overcome challenges in many ways. No matter what you are facing, being a prayer warrior can help you overcome it. Prayers are powerful because they are being answered by God. Sometimes we believe that our prayers are not being answered, but this is not true. Our prayers are answered in one of three ways—yes, no, or wait. Therefore, even if our prayer is answered with a no, it is still being answered.
If God answers, "No" to your prayer, know that this is God’s will and it is what is best. God’s ways are higher than our ways, and we can trust Him when He says, "No." Even if we really want something to happen, sometimes it is best that our prayer is not answered with a yes. The Lord knows more than we do; therefore, we know that we can trust Him regardless of the outcome. When you are facing challenges, approach the situation as a prayer warrior and go to the Lord for help. He will never leave you alone in your battles.
Staying active in the Bible is a second biblical way to overcome challenges. The Bible is the main way God communicates with us, which is why it is crucial for us to stay active in reading it. The Bible is not a one-time read. Rather, it is a book we will continue to read throughout our lives so we will constantly be learning more about God through its pages. When we look at the Bible in this way, we see it as a guidebook and something that will direct our paths.
Everything written in the Bible is to guide us, instruct us, and help us (2 Timothy 3:16-17). We can overcome any challenge we face by consulting the Bible. There are many present-day issues that are not spoken of in the Bible; however, we can use concepts from the Bible to help with whatever we are facing. Through prayer and Bible reading, no challenge will be too difficult for us. The Lord will direct us as we read the Bible and help us to know how to better overcome the challenges we are facing.
Moreover, the Bible will also be a source of encouragement during difficult challenges. Throughout the Bible, we see God use ordinary, everyday people to do great things for His Name. You are no exception to this rule. God has great plans for your future and He will help you overcome your current struggle. The Bible will be the way God speaks to you, and He will provide you with the insight in order to overcome your challenge.
A third biblical way to overcome challenges is to train yourself in godliness. The Bible says, “For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:8). As Paul tells us in this passage, physical training helps us at the present time; however, training ourselves in godliness helps us both in the present day as well as for all eternity. When we look at things from this perspective, we can see how important it is to train ourselves in godliness. Godliness is something we have to work at; however, once we continue to train ourselves in godliness, we will better reflect Christ to the world.
Training yourself in godliness helps you to overcome challenges because you will be approaching the challenges in a manner worthy of Jesus Christ. Maybe your challenge is having to talk to a loved one about a sin they are struggling with. This can be very difficult, yet if we see their life suffering because of the sin, we want to do something about it. The challenge you are having to face is fear of what your loved one will say. When you address the topic, your loved one will probably get defensive; however, if you train yourself in godliness, you will respond in a manner worthy of Christ instead of responding in fear or frustration.
It can be emotionally heavy when our loved ones do not listen to us, but it is never helpful to respond in anger. It will only wear you out and make you feel bad about your actions later in the day. Instead of responding in anger and frustration, godliness will help you respond with love, mercy, and grace. This will be much more helpful to yourself as well as to your loved one. The Lord will also be pleased with your actions because you chose to glorify Him instead of giving into the sinful flesh.
A fourth biblical way to overcome challenges is to focus on the Lord—not on the challenge. This can be difficult, especially if the challenge seems really daunting; however, we have to remind ourselves that nothing is bigger or more powerful than God. Keeping our eyes on Jesus will help us face the challenge without fear (Hebrews 12:2). If we focus on the challenge or the hard thing, we will lose sight of Christ. We will be full of dread rather than full of hope. This is when we need to change where we are looking—we need to focus on Christ amidst the challenge.
As an example, your challenge could be you are facing a medical diagnosis. You will have to undergo extensive treatment and medication management. This can be a scary thing to face, but when we focus on Jesus instead of the challenge, the challenge won’t be as heavy or defeating. We will remember that God is with us no matter what. Even if we have to undergo extensive treatment, the Lord will still be with us. He will give us strength not only to face the challenge but also to overcome it. Meanwhile, we can use our God-given peace and joy to be a witness to others.
A fifth biblical way to overcome challenges is to lean on God for support. Throughout the challenges we face in life, we will grow weary. This is when we need to lean on God for support. He will be able to carry us when we are too tired or too weak to move on. The Lord is always there to support us, and He will never let us fall. The challenge you are facing might feel like the hardest thing you have ever done, but when you lean on God for support, you will feel more confident to overcome it.
We all face challenges in our lives, and some challenges are harder than others. No matter what the challenge is, we still need the Lord’s help. He is always more than happy to help us, and, in fact, He wants us to come to Him. The Lord is aware that many challenges are too hard to face on our own and He wants to help us (Matthew 11:28-30). Turn to the Lord and lean on Him for support. He will never let His children be defeated.
"We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body." 2 Corinthians 4:8-10
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/seksan Mongkhonkhamsao