Guarding Your Faith When the Journey Gets Hard
I was talking with someone the other day about my time in nursing school and how much work it required. It truly was a journey.
When you are in the thick of it, the entire process feels like a lifetime. First come the prerequisites just to be accepted. Then comes nursing school itself: endless hours in class, massive amounts of studying outside of class, and—let’s not even talk about—those early-morning clinical rotations at facilities you would never have chosen on your own.
During that season, you are exposed to so many new environments and forced to navigate so many different personalities. There were distinct moments of a lack of confidence, which is terrifying when you realize you are handling someone’s life. Thankfully, the encouragement of fellow students kept me going. There were also mean, rigid teachers who wouldn’t budge or grant you a single point if you were failing.
I know that struggle all too well. I actually failed a class and had to retake it as a night course. I failed that semester because one of my children was hospitalized. Later on, I even had to retake my State Boards all because of a poor decision to stay at the wrong place the night before the exam.
I also remember the hard lesson of watching people I helped pass their tests while I failed the very same exam. I had to learn that I was there for my own journey; helping others has its place, but they also needed to put in their own work.
I did all of this while being married and raising four children.
Let me tell you, I prevailed. I became a nurse. Why would I give up after going through so much to get licensed? The license was the goal, and I refused to stop until I reached it. What is so encouraging looking back is that when the trial was finally over, I was able to fully rest and work in the assignment God had for me.
Reflecting on that journey takes my mind straight to the Book of Hebrews, where we are reminded to enter into His rest. Just like in nursing school, we must be diligent and put in the effort to enter that rest.
We have a goal to receive the promises of God, just as the Israelites were promised a land flowing with milk and honey. However, their lack of faith hindered them. Their hardened hearts and unbelief drove them to make poor choices that directly affected their destination (Hebrews 3:11).
The scripture warns us directly about this path:
“Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” — Hebrews 4:11 (KJV)
The promise to enter into His rest—both here on earth and when we finally go home—requires us to have a persevering faith to secure what He has for us.
I share my story to remind you that the promise awaits you, and when you arrive, you will experience true relief. You must have the faith to persevere, guard your heart, and know that by persevering in faith, you will reach your destination. You can walk into the promises of God! In Him is absolute rest. He says, “Come all ye that labor, and I will give you rest.”
I want to encourage you today to rest in Him. Keep working, keep pushing, and keep your faith active, because it is a promise.
When the trial is over, God has relief and a beautiful promise waiting for you. Don’t give up right before your breakthrough!
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