A Slow and Safe Place
SARAH FREYMUTH
Lee en español
“Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.” Hebrews 10:35-36 (ESV)
Streetlights reflect off puddles on pavement, gray clouds hanging low. The tires of tired cars press the wet road on this weary afternoon, reflecting traffic lights and water drops. As I look down from my apartment above, the strain of constant coming and going on the street mimics my own soul’s tired efforts in a season where resolution has not yet come.
Rain falls, delicate, determined. This shower should last all day, forcing plans to stall and my breath to slow. Though all is not quite better, I try to let healing run its course in me.
It’s been a struggle, if I’m honest. The strain of slogging through has worn me out for many months during a long physical and mental health journey. I’m left in the middle of this marathon, the stretch of steps where miles blur but I wonder if I’m making any progress at all. I am far from the starting line but feel stuck forever at a distance from the finish line.
How do we handle these midpoints in life? These seasons of waiting when we are worn from holding on to certain promises of God that have not yet come to pass?
While we wait, what do we do? How should we be?
In the stillness of suspension, waiting on the unseen, the not quite yet, do we simply push through until we reach the other side?
Perhaps we pause, breathe in peace, and begin again — keep pressing on.
“Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised” (Hebrews 10:35-36).
We have need of endurance.
Yes, this road has been long, and we may find ourselves on a stretch of trail thick in the wilderness, wandering, looking for the path that leads us into our promised land. Hearts weary, hope battered, trust gathering dust. All we want is a way out, but it feels like God’s not giving guarantees.
Sometimes all we can do is fall into the rest He is holding out to us this day. The truth is that the way forward is in fact the way into Him. Deeper into His love, His character, His unwavering voice that whispers to us that we are safe in His embrace. He gives us what we need in order to endure and scoops us up at a stopping point to let us rest before we continue. During this pause in the pressing on, He fills us with His grace that is more than good enough.
God can restore the joy of our salvation (Psalm 51:12) and bring us back to where we began believing in Him. He urges us in the softest ways to hold firmly to our trust in Him, assured that He who set off from the starting line with us still weaves through the weeds right now as we make our way along the trail. His presence is our promise, and this we can hold on to as our guarantee.
When the road is long and our lungs are on the brink of collapse, let's pull away for a moment to a slow and safe place and let our hearts rest in Him. The longer we endure, the deeper we go with Him into those weary places, we receive the reward of His grace again and again.
Father, You have been with me since the start. You know how I have suffered and how I feel stuck in the middle of a never-ending journey to healing. Will You enter into my weariness and remind me of who You are? Will You revive my heart and mind so I can rest in Your grace and keep pressing on? Thank You that You hear my prayers and are concerned for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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FOR DEEPER STUDY
Romans 12:12, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer” (ESV).
What does it mean to be patient in the middle of our trials? How does rejoicing in hope and being constant in prayer help?
How can you pause today to remember all the times God has delivered you in the past and tell Him that you will trust His timing for healing and resolution again?
We’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts in the comments.
© 2023 by Sarah Freymuth. All rights reserved.
Proverbs 31 Ministries
P.O. Box 3189
Matthews, NC 28106
www.Proverbs31.org
Originally published Friday, 13 October 2023.
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