discouragement — Daily Devotion — Kristen Alexis Cave

Why You Should Persevere When You’d Rather Quit

I have a love-hate relationship with assembling furniture. It always takes longer than you think it will. The instructions always seem to have 800 steps. And I get irritated enough to start lecturing the furniture at least once per piece. But I love the feeling when I finish putting it together and get to experience the finished product in all its glory. Knowing all of this, I tried to mentally prepare myself to assemble my new bookcases, but when the time came to put them together, it ended up being a much more frustrating afternoon than I expected.

Kristen CaveJuly 25, 2024perseverance, quitting, don't quit, giving up, crying, discouragementComment

Beauty In The Valley

Gratitude is all about perspective. Are we willing to widen our gaze to see what unexpected blessings came along this year? Or are we going to remain focused on the disappointment and unmet expectations? Are we willing to dig a little deeper to identify all that we can to thank the Lord for? Or are we going to hold onto our surface perspective, zoning in on what we wish didn’t happen this year?

Kristen CaveNovember 22, 2023valley, struggle, disappointment, discouragement, pain, hardship, 2020, joy, peace, thankfulness, gratitude, thanksgiving, thankfulComment

Pray With Persistence

I want you to take a second and think about how important of a role persistence plays in our lives. If you want something, it often takes persistence to obtain it. Very rarely do you get exactly what you want on the first try.

Kristen CaveSeptember 19, 2023persistence, perseverance, prayer, waiting, basketball, patience, frustration, discouragementComment

Hold On Tight To Your Dreams

When you find yourself stuck between where you were and where you want to be for an extended period of time, it can be easy to lose your capacity to dream. As Proverbs 13:12 says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.” When your feel heart-sick, dreaming is the last thing on your mind. But Psalm 126 encourages us to never stop dreaming, even when what we’re hoping for hasn’t become a reality yet.

Kristen CaveFebruary 9, 2022dreams, hope, hopes, disappointment, discouragement, circumstances, music, songs, waiting, patienceComment

Keep Praying Anyway

I need to be honest with you about something…Prayer has been really tough for me over the past year. In a way, I feel ashamed to admit that because I feel like if I’m going to struggle with something, prayer shouldn’t be that thing. You’d think talking to God would always be one of the easiest things about being a Christian. And while a lot of times that’s true, there are also times when it’s super tough to pray.

Kristen CaveSeptember 27, 2021prayer, waiting, patience, doubt, discouragement, disappointment, hope, faith, trust, beliefComment

Access Denied

A while back, I was listening to a sermon by Michael Todd when he made this statement, “Our God is the God of access granted and access denied.” It was such a simple sentence, but it hit me hard, because I’ve lived through multiple circumstances where I so badly wanted something to work out, only to have my access to that desire denied. I’ve learned how there’s nothing I can do in my power to open a door that’s supposed to stay closed, or to close a door that’s supposed to stay open.

Kristen CaveJuly 29, 2021rejection, disappointment, frustration, discouragement, hope, open door, closed door, waiting, patienceComment

Pray With Persistence

Think about how important of a role persistence plays in our lives. If you want something, it often takes persistence to obtain it. Very rarely do you get exactly what you want on the first try.

Kristen CaveFebruary 26, 2021persistence, perseverance, prayer, waiting, basketball, patience, frustration, discouragementComment

Hold On Tight To Your Dreams

When you find yourself stuck between where you were and where you want to be for an extended period of time, it can be easy to lose your capacity to dream. As Proverbs 13:12 says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.” When your feel heart-sick, dreaming is the last thing on your mind. But Psalm 126 encourages us to never stop dreaming, even when what we’re hoping for hasn’t become a reality yet.

Kristen CaveFebruary 16, 2021dreams, hope, hopes, disappointment, discouragement, circumstances, music, songs, waiting, patienceComment

Waiting For A Miracle

As another year comes to an end, most of us will take the time to look back on God’s past faithfulness over these last twelve months. I’m sure there are at least a handful of things you can point to as evidence of God’s work in your life this year. But there also might be something you’re still waiting for. Maybe you’re still holding out for a miracle, hoping God will act on your behalf sooner rather than later.

Kristen CaveDecember 31, 2020waiting, trust, patience, trusting God, discouragement, hope, faith, miracleComment

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