What hard things do

Every year, I do a happy dance on August 31, and occasionally, I do two.

I always celebrate the end of the hottest month of the year because, as a runner, I love to run in the cooler and colder months. Summer running is the worst. I know that every runner feels the same way, but I can’t help it that other runners are wrong.

But on those end of August days that I do a second happy dance, I celebrate that I ran through those hot and humid summer months. It’s about this time of year that I begin to see the hard summer work begin to pay off. My resting heart rate begins to drop, my pace begins to drop, and my ability to run farther and longer begins to increase.

It doesn’t mean that I enjoyed the summer runs, but it does mean that I will enjoy the fall runs more. When the hard work is done, the payoff begins.

You don’t have to be a runner to understand this truth. Paul wrote about it to the church in Rome, too, and his words encourage us to see the bigger picture of what hard things can do in our lives.

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. (‭‭Romans‬ ‭5:3-5‬ ‭NLT, emphasis mine)

Problems, like hot and humid summer runs, feel impossible to get through. They slow us down. They cause us to question if we’ve got what it takes. They make us want to give up until it gets easier.

But that’s just it. Things only get easier when we do the hard things. Hard summer runs lead to easier fall runs. Learning to breathe in humidity leads to greater lung capacity in the crisp, autumn air. So it is with the hard seasons you and I face. They hurt, but ultimately, they help us learn to endure. They develop character that leads to confidence, and confidence that leads to hope.

Enduring the hard things develops a hope that endures all things. A hope that doesn’t disappoint. A hope that is grounded in the love of God and fueled by the power of God.

Dance with me, friend, because the hard things are passing, and hope is on its way.

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