79.Finding Strength in God When You Feel Weak (Isaiah 40:29-31)

Have you ever reached a point where you simply don’t have the strength you need?

Read the full article at GingerHarrington.com

Not the kind you can push through or plan your way out of—but the kind where your soul feels tired, your heart feels heavy, and the next step feels harder than it should.

In this episode, Ginger and Larissa walk through one of the most comforting promises in Scripture—Isaiah 40:29–31—and explore what it really means to find strength in God in the middle of real-life struggles. Together, they unpack how waiting on the Lord is not passive, but an active posture of hope—and how God meets us there with the strength we need.

If you’re feeling weary, discouraged, or overwhelmed, this conversation will gently remind you: you are not alone, and God is not asking you to be strong enough—He is inviting you to receive His strength.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• What it truly means to “wait on the Lord”
• Why strength is something God gives—not something you create
• How hope and waiting are deeply connected
• Simple, practical ways to turn toward God in hard seasons

Key Scripture:

• Isaiah 40:29–31 

Mentioned in this Episode

• Why Small Habits Matter More than You Think (Faithfulness in Everyday Life)

Transcript

Ginger Harrington (00:06.497)

Have you ever found yourself in a moment where you simply don't have the strength you need? Not the kind you can push through with determination, not the kind you can fix with a better plan, but the kind where your soul feels tired, where grief lingers, where disappointment feels heavy, where the next step feels harder than it should, and you wonder, where does strength come from when mine is gone?

Welcome to the Habits of Hope podcast, where we believe a life rooted in hope is formed through daily rhythms that help us trust God's faithfulness, even in life's hardest seasons. Each episode is an opportunity and an invitation to practice small, intentional habits that shape a deeper spiritual life. Together, we have meaningful conversations, share honest stories, and explore biblical truth in ways to help you live with steady faith.

resilient hope and clear purpose. Because the more we practice choosing hope, the more we begin to recognize God's faithfulness at work in our own stories. If you're ready to deepen your connection with God and navigate life with a hopeful heart, you are in the right place. Let's get started, because a deeper life begins now. I'm Ginger Herrington.

author, speaker and podcaster, and I am here with my good friend, Larissa Terquaire. Hello, my friend.

Larissa Traquair (01:37.465)

Hey, Ginger, so good to be here with you as always. I think I say that every time, but it's still true. And I am a live broadcaster and the founder of the Cultivate Community where we go deeper in things like cultivating gratitude and community weekly and monthly. And so I'm excited to get to be here today with you and to talk about this topic.

Ginger Harrington (02:06.081)

Well, today's conversation is going to be a tender one. We're talking about finding our strength in God, not in theory, but in real life. And Larissa is coming to this episode carrying fresh grief after losing her faithful dog, Samson, a companion who has been with her through her hardest seasons. And what we're discovering together is this, sometimes the need for strength is not abstract, it's deeply personal.

Larissa Traquair (02:37.154)

That's so true, Ginger. And one thing I have to say is God is so consistent in how He works in and through me. And maybe that's the same for everybody, but He seems to have this pattern where I go through something really hard and I'm given an opportunity to share about it when it's still somewhat raw. This isn't always the case because He knows what is best, of course, but I really believe in this case, it's both for my benefit and all of our benefit, right? Excuse me.

Let me say that again. This isn't always the case because he knows what is best, but I really believe in this particular case, it's both for my benefit and for everybody else's. Because see, I can truly tell you right now, just a short amount of time after making the hardest decision I've had to make since Bill died, which was saying goodbye to Samson, I am still really struggling and wrestling with the Lord and I...

desperately needed this reminder. And Ginger, you've been so great and you know full well how much I'm struggling. And so I appreciate getting to actually put feet to my faith and focus on this particular scripture. And so I'm going to share that with y'all. And it's one of those scriptures, I think a lot of us will recognize it, but maybe this is a now word for y'all. Cause when I read it recently, it was a now word for me.

So there's this passage that is good to return to in seasons like this. It's one of the most well-known promises in scripture, Isaiah 40, 29 through 31. Let me read it for us. He gives strength to the weary and to the one who lacks might he increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired and vigorous young men stumble badly.

yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run and not get tired. They will walk and not become weary." Before we talk about how this applies to our lives, let's just take a moment to understand what's truly happening here. So Ginger, will you share that with us?

Ginger Harrington (04:51.606)

Isaiah 40 is written to people who are weary. God's people had been through years of hardship, uncertainty, and long seasons of waiting, and into that wait, I'm say that again, and into that weariness, God doesn't just give instructions. He gives a beautiful promise. He promises to give strength to the weak.

And notice who this promise is for. I just love this. He gives power, strength to the weak. Not the strong, not the self-sufficient, not the winners, but the ones who know that they don't have what it takes. The ones who are struggling. And that means that this is... Let say that again. And that means that this promise is not for the people who have it all together. It's for when you don't.

Larissa Traquair (05:45.23)

Amen. and I love this idea that waiting on the Lord is hope in action and of course perfect for us here at the Habits of Hope podcast. So let's slow down here because this is where everything in this passage turns. Those who wait on the Lord. Some translations say those who hope in the Lord. And that's not a coincidence. In the original Hebrew, the word for wait carries the meaning to hope.

to expect, to look for, to eagerly anticipate, even to bind yourself to something. So when scripture says to wait on the Lord, it's not describing passive delay. It's actually describing active, anchored hope. So what does this mean for us? Because I know I could use this right now. Waiting on God is not just about time passing. It's about where your hope is placed while you are waiting.

Because we're all waiting for something. We're waiting for answers, healing, direction, relief, restoration. The question isn't, are you waiting? The question really is, what are you attaching your hope to while you wait? And this is so good, Ginger. I love this reframe that I'm gonna get to share here in regards to this waiting. So waiting says, I don't have the answer yet. And hope says, but I trust the one who does.

Waiting says, this is taking longer than I want. Can I get an amen to that one? Hope says, God is still at work in ways I can't see. Waiting says, I feel weak. Hope says, God gives strength to the weak. So Ginger, why does this matter? I mean, I know why it matters to me right now, but why does this matter in general?

Ginger Harrington (07:37.867)

I think if we're separating waiting from hope, waiting feels frustrating. It feels empty. Sometimes it's discouraging. Sometimes waiting feels like you're at a dead end. And I have experienced times of waiting in my life that have tempted me to doubt God. And God wants our faith to be strengthened in waiting.

Larissa Traquair (07:57.346)

yeah.

Ginger Harrington (08:03.808)

But it's a hard place. You know, we don't like being in the waiting rooms of life. We just don't like it at all. We want it now. Yesterday would be even better. So when waiting is rooted in hope, it becomes a place of expectation. And I remember doing a Bible study years ago by Jackie Banas-Shank on hope, and she defined hope as the habit of permanent expectancy, of expecting God.

Larissa Traquair (08:14.146)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (08:32.83)

rather than trying to fix and solve for certain situations. And that is such powerful little definition. Because when we wait with hope and expectation, we're trusting in God's faithfulness. It's when he shows up, not if he shows up, when he answers, not if he answers.

Larissa Traquair (08:33.229)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (08:50.925)

Hmm.

Ginger Harrington (08:55.24)

And that is a place where our hearts can stay connected to God instead of drifting into fear, anxiety, control or despair. And that is powerful. This kind of waiting isn't passive. And I think sometimes waiting is so hard because it feels like I can't do anything right now. I'm just waiting. And we don't like that.

Larissa Traquair (09:18.582)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (09:21.184)

But it's not passive. It's not sitting back and doing nothing. It is active. Actively seeking God, actively making the choice to rely on Him, actively choosing to trust Him over our own strength and our own answers and our own preferences. That's a hard one. And it means waiting is not the absence of movement. It's a posture.

Larissa Traquair (09:41.153)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (09:49.267)

way of thinking and living and being with God that allows God to renew our strength and that is so Special waiting on God is not giving up. It is where hope takes root I'm gonna say that again Waiting on God is not giving up. It is where hope takes root and strength begins to grow

Larissa Traquair (10:16.779)

So good, Ginger.

Ginger Harrington (10:19.68)

So let's think about another aspect of this and that is strength is renewed, not manufactured. And I think of so many times where I'm just like, I just gotta get a little more energy. I gotta get a little more strength.

Ginger Harrington (10:45.6)

Let's think about another point here, and that is strength is renewed, not something we manufacture or come up with. You know, when we're talking about physical strength, we go to the gym and we train our muscles. We put in the reps and, you know, we can do things that make us stronger. But here scripture is saying they shall renew their strength. And that word renew carries the idea of

putting on fresh strength again and again. It's not about digging deeper inside yourself or pulling yourself up from the bootstraps, so to speak. It's about receiving something new from God. Fresh strength, strength that doesn't come from you, but it's given to you.

Larissa Traquair (11:36.011)

Yeah, that is so good. Yeah, that's so good. And strength, the one thing I'm being reminded of both in my current situation and experience and in general is just that strength looks different in different seasons. And this is a great point to remember and rely on. So I love the progression here. You will soar, you will run, you will walk. Not every season is soaring.

Ginger Harrington (11:36.372)

Any thoughts on that, my friend?

Larissa Traquair (12:05.908)

Sometimes strength looks like running towards or forward with endurance. And sometimes strength simply looks like walking one step at a time and not giving up. And that's kind of where I'm at, you know? And it's such a great reminder that we need to be mindful that not every season is soaring and that is okay. Because I think sometimes we can think something's wrong with us.

And it isn't wrong with us. It's hard. And sometimes we just have to take one step at a time and not give up. And that's such a great reminder when we're talking about relying on the Lord's strength. what does this look like in real life, right? Because we can talk all about it. And then when life hits, what does this really look like? Because if we're honest, we do not always feel strengthened. We feel tired, emotionally drained.

overwhelmed and discouraged. Just like you wrote in the original post that you did on this, so many of our needs for strength carry an emotional weight. Is that okay? Do I have said that or do you need me to say that differently?

Ginger Harrington (13:18.585)

Just take out the just like you wrote.

Larissa Traquair (13:20.844)

Okay, so just skip that. We're just gonna skip that. So I just said discouraged. So let's talk about what we do then when we're feeling tired and discouraged. What prevents us from receiving strength? So honestly, because, okay, sorry, let me start all over, okay.

Ginger Harrington (13:42.986)

Go back to just say so many of our needs for strength.

Larissa Traquair (13:47.26)

so many of our needs for strength.

Ginger Harrington (13:48.916)

Yeah, the end of that last section. don't.

Larissa Traquair (13:51.613)

Okay, just say, so many of our needs for strength carry an emotional weight. Okay. So many of our needs for strength carry an emotional weight. So what prevents us from receiving strength? Let's talk honestly for a moment, because if God promises strength when we wait on Him, why do we so often still feel depleted? It's not because God is withholding, which is such a great reminder.

Sometimes it's because our hearts are turned somewhere else. Sometimes we will do things like rush ahead instead of wait. We want answers quickly. We want relief now. We want clarity before we take the next step. That can definitely be me. So instead of waiting on God, we move ahead of him. We try to fix, figure out, or force what only God can provide. And before we know it, we're exhausted. Not because we've done too little.

but because we've been carrying what was never ours to carry.

Ginger Harrington (14:56.714)

That's so true and it's so easy to do this. my word. And I have come to learn that a lot of times for me personally, that anxiety is an indicator for me that I'm depending on myself or someone or something else other than the Lord for strength and for wisdom and for provision. And so

Larissa Traquair (15:01.152)

Yeah, yeah.

Larissa Traquair (15:24.267)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (15:25.814)

that can look different for others of us, but we're all going to face this temptation. And we've seen it in Scripture many times and, you know, a lot of times it doesn't work out so great. This is the backstory of learning things the hard way, right?

Larissa Traquair (15:33.388)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (15:41.963)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (15:46.412)

Yes, very true, very true.

Ginger Harrington (15:49.655)

You know, sometimes it does work out okay, but we are walking in our own strength rather than receiving strength from the Lord. so I think sometimes another temptation is we strive instead of trust. And this one has so much to do with anxiousness because that's...

Larissa Traquair (16:07.788)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (16:13.076)

What we're doing is we're striving, we're trying to control, we're trying to figure it out. And the anxious person deals with the insecurities and the weaker moments of life by, I've got to think of everything that could happen and have a plan. I've got to live ahead versus rather than live now. And I've got to be prepared for what might happen.

Larissa Traquair (16:33.836)

Hmm, yeah.

Ginger Harrington (16:41.256)

You know, that's a piece of striving. Sometimes that striving is relational, you know. How many of us, and I won't even say how many of us ladies, because I think men can do this too. We get into a situation with another person and we're striving. We are trying to fix something. We are trying to get them to come around to our way of thinking.

Larissa Traquair (16:47.882)

Mm, yeah.

Ginger Harrington (17:09.982)

because that's what's going to make it okay, rather than trusting the Lord with it. So this is subtle, but powerful. We don't always walk away from God. Sometimes we just start relying on ourselves and walking according to our flesh patterns and our own wisdom more than we are relying on Him. We think things like, if I just try harder, if I stay strong, if I hold it all together,

But scripture is clear here. God gives strength to the weak. Which means if we're determined to be self-sufficient, we might just miss the strength that he is offering. these are hard ones. And you know, this is why I love unpacking scripture. Because we're not adding to scripture. We're talking about why this is challenging and why we sometimes miss it.

Larissa Traquair (17:52.448)

Yeah.

They are,

Ginger Harrington (18:09.074)

when we've asked God for strength. And here's another one and like these are in increasing order of difficulty. Okay, strap in. Here we go for this one. We resist surrender.

Larissa Traquair (18:17.035)

Great. We're here for it though.

Ginger Harrington (18:26.538)

Waiting on God requires letting go of our desires, our plans, our have-tos, want-tos. It needs to be this way in order to be okay. And that is so hard. And this is where it gets personal. We're letting go of our timeline, our expectations, our need to understand.

How many times? And I think this one might hit home for you right now. Why now, God?

Larissa Traquair (19:00.293)

Mm. Amen. That's a hard one. Mm-hmm.

Ginger Harrington (19:02.772)

You know, why, why did this happen now? Our desire to control the outcome, for parents. my goodness. This one is a huge temptation. We want to control the outcome. Meaning we want our kids to be okay. We want our kids to love the Lord. We want our kids to marry the right person, to make the good grades, the whatever, whatever it

The thing is, we want to control the outcome and we certainly participate in the process, but God is the Lord of outcomes. And so sometimes we're not just waiting, we're wrestling, holding tight to what we think should happen. And that tension, it drains our strength. You know, just this morning, just this morning, I'm reading in Genesis about Jacob.

Larissa Traquair (19:38.505)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (19:47.627)

Hmm.

Ginger Harrington (20:01.694)

wrestling with God with wrestling with that angel and he wrestled all night long and You know anyway It happens and God uses the struggle he uses the struggle in our life, but we don't want to stay in that place of struggle and surrender is One of the things that enables us to have those breakthrough moments

Larissa Traquair (20:02.507)

Larissa Traquair (20:13.726)

It does.

Ginger Harrington (20:33.12)

where we can really begin to receive what God is doing and the strength and the provision of His nearness and His work in the situation.

Larissa Traquair (20:44.149)

Yeah, so good. Another one is we disconnect instead of draw near. When we're tired, discouraged or grieving, our natural response isn't always to move toward God. Sometimes we withdraw, we numb out, we distract ourselves or avoid. Sorry. Hold please.

Larissa Traquair (21:12.017)

or we avoid the deeper places of our hearts. But strength is not found in escaping the struggle. It's found in bringing our whole selves into God's presence. And I've definitely learned this over the almost six years that I have been grieving since Bill died. And there is so much relief and intimacy when you can just bring your whole self to the Lord and fully surrender, like you said earlier.

Ginger Harrington (21:46.486)

I'm gonna go put Isabel away.

Larissa Traquair (21:48.58)

okay, she has now arrived. Okay. Hold please.

Ginger Harrington (21:51.456)

twice.

Larissa Traquair (22:31.829)

Okay, did you need me to repeat something or are you good? I didn't hear her, that doesn't mean... Okay, so it's found in bringing our whole selves, but I'd said something after that too, though.

Ginger Harrington (22:35.222)

Just get that last line just so.

Ginger Harrington (22:43.958)

But straight, okay.

Larissa Traquair (22:46.44)

I just kind of ad-libbed. But I can do it again and if you have to take the ad-lib out.

Ginger Harrington (22:54.026)

Just do it again and to start the conversation and I'll edit it accordingly.

Larissa Traquair (23:02.025)

Okay. It's found in bringing our whole selves into God's presence. And this is really ringing true for me, even over these almost six years since Bill died. And there's such a relief and an intimacy to this coming to the Lord with all of me and trusting Him, as you said earlier, surrendering completely to Him.

Ginger Harrington (23:27.572)

Yeah, you know, and I think about at times where I've heard people say, well, I don't want to trouble God with this. You know, he's a big God. He doesn't need to be worried about my emotions right here. This seat feels too small or or too emotional or too something to bring to the Lord. And, you know, I think we do. I think that's a piece of this is resisting that

feeling like what we're dealing with isn't important enough for God to care about. And then that withdrawal piece, that distracting ourselves piece. my goodness. Wow. I just wonder, know, as a culture, we are such a distracted people in today's age.

Larissa Traquair (24:01.854)

Mm-hmm.

Larissa Traquair (24:15.402)

Right?

Larissa Traquair (24:25.662)

Yes, we are.

Ginger Harrington (24:27.67)

And you know, Netflix has become an addiction of choice for many people, you know, just numb out and binge watch. 15 years ago, binge watching was not even a term. It's and the bottom line is it's it's easy to go everywhere and anywhere but God when we're struggling and

Larissa Traquair (24:44.102)

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (24:54.782)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (24:57.542)

intimacy with God and strength from God comes when we bring it all to Him, when we entrust it all to Him rather than turning away to something else. And this is such a major theme in Scripture.

Larissa Traquair (25:04.884)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (25:14.994)

Yeah, it's so good Ginger. I love that you brought that up because it makes me think our pastor just spoke about this the other day and one of the things he said was to fight the good fight. He's talking about Paul speaking to Timothy and encouraging him to fight the good fight and one of those ways is to fight distractions and he said, we don't have a discipline... let me say that again... and he says we don't have a discipline problem, we have an attention problem.

And I've really been thinking about that and that goes along great with what you're saying is that we really need to pay attention more and specifically to the Lord and what he is doing and saying to us. So that's so good, Ginger.

Ginger Harrington (25:57.778)

Mm-hmm. Yeah. Well, another one is the temptation to lose sight of hope while we wait. And this may be the most important one. Those seasons where we're still waiting, but we're no longer hoping. And I've had moments of that, not eternal hoping, but like hoping for the situation that I was experiencing or the thing that I was working on, the goal I was trying to meet.

And you know, you just kind of resign yourself. Nothing's ever going to change. We're no longer hoping. We're still waiting. No longer hoping. Nothing is changing. This will always feel this way. This person will always act this way. God must not be working. And slowly without realizing it, we can become bitter. We can become resigned in an

Larissa Traquair (26:32.788)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (26:57.095)

in a negative way, we can, what's the word I'm thinking of?

We can become complacent. can become.

Ginger Harrington (27:11.583)

What is the word, you know, when you have that negative outlook on everything?

Larissa Traquair (27:16.495)

gosh, feel like I'm no help right now. Usually I'm really good at this, but I am totally not.

Ginger Harrington (27:24.029)

Well, you guys probably know what word I'm trying to say here. Anyway.

Larissa Traquair (27:27.528)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (27:30.954)

Someone in Pocatello, Idaho is yelling out at the podcast, this is the word you're looking for, so please text us and let us know what it is.

Ginger Harrington (27:34.325)

hahahaha

Ginger Harrington (27:39.862)

Well, we're just gonna take that out of the conversation but you know slowly without realizing our waiting becomes empty instead of expectant and Maybe if we're honest, it's not just one of these maybe it's a mixture of several of these or maybe even all of these a slow drift a quiet turning away a habit of looking anywhere and everywhere else first

Larissa Traquair (27:43.155)

Okay.

Larissa Traquair (28:00.253)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (28:09.075)

The problem isn't that God isn't giving strength, it's that we're often looking someplace else for it. But that moment that we turn back to Him, even quietly, even imperfectly, we begin to receive what He's been offering all along. So how do we return to that place of looking to God with expectant hope? What does it act? Let's say that again.

What does it actually look like to weigh on the Lord in a way that He renews our strength?

Ginger Harrington (28:47.047)

If waiting on the Lord is where strength is renewed, you know, how do do that in real life? It's all fine, well and good to talk about this. And it's a great conversation, but let's drill down to even more on a practical level because waiting isn't one single action. It's a posture and a mindset and a way of thinking and believing and trusting that we return to again and again.

Larissa Traquair (29:00.894)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (29:16.179)

So sis, let's talk about this and what is this looking like in your life?

Ginger Harrington (29:26.438)

Okay, let's back up to that again. Let's talk about what this is looking like in your life and friends as you listen Think about is there one of these that meets you where you are today?

Larissa Traquair (29:27.572)

said, yeah, let's talk about, yeah.

Larissa Traquair (29:40.105)

Yeah, that's such a great question and a practical one when we answer it. So one of those ways is waiting in prayer or waiting can look like prayer. Sometimes waiting is, gosh, sorry. Okay, let me say that again. Waiting can be prayer. Sometimes it just, wow, okay. Okay.

Ginger Harrington (30:02.409)

Just skip that line.

Larissa Traquair (30:06.516)

Sometimes waiting can be prayer, a prayer spoken out loud, whispered under your breath, or silently formed in the ache of your soul. It might be words or it might just be a groan that God understands. Waiting begins when we turn toward Him and say, God, I need your strength. I need what only you can provide. And I think we maybe covered this on some episode in the last however long where we talked about praying out loud.

And that is one thing I do, especially when I need more strength or when I'm like the thoughts are swirling, I will pray out loud. There's just something about that that really can help my mind go, okay, I gotta take this seriously. I need to really pay attention. So prayer is so good in so many different ways. Another one is waiting can be a posture. It's not just something we think, it's something we embody. Sometimes that looks like bowing your head.

sitting still for a moment, opening your hands, leaning into His presence. These small physical or spiritual postures help refocus our attention on God instead of everything that's pulling at us. So how about you, sis? What does this look like or what's another one that you'd like to share with us?

Ginger Harrington (31:22.399)

Well, we mentioned this a few minutes ago when we're talking about surrender. Waiting often looks like letting go. This is where waiting is so hard. Because to wait on the Lord, we often have to release something that we're holding on to. Our expectations, our timelines, our what about me thoughts. And it's the moment when we lay down the rope in those quiet tug of wars that we often have with God.

Larissa Traquair (31:29.076)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (31:49.174)

Instead of trying to control the outcome, we choose to trust Him with it. And several years ago, the Lord gave me an illustration that might be meaningful for some people. You know, we're talking about waiting on the Lord and receiving the strength that He's talking about here. If I've got something in my hands, you know, for those of you who watching the video, I've got this mug in my hands. If my hands are full, it's very difficult to

if the Lord is giving me something, it's very difficult to receive it, to grab hold of it if my hands are already full. But if I will set this mug down and open my hands out, then my hands are ready and empty and able to receive something that the Lord is going to give. And so that's just a real visual illustration of

Larissa Traquair (32:23.986)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (32:43.541)

Waiting often means setting something down or letting something go. And oftentimes those things that we're praying about, the Lord answers them. But he was waiting on us to let go of the, has to be this way, kind of mentality, just to simply trust him with it. And so that's very powerful. Sometimes waiting looks like making a decision.

Larissa Traquair (32:51.656)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (33:00.306)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (33:12.799)

Particularly a decision of faith that it's it's not passive. It's Waiting is a choice and we don't often feel that way I'm gonna back up It's not that waiting is a choice What we do with ourselves while we're waiting is a choice It's a holy decision to trust God even when we don't know the outcome yet when we don't know the answer yet

Larissa Traquair (33:20.914)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (33:42.119)

sometimes we're not even sure of the question. It's choosing to remember that God's heart is for us, that it is good, and that His promise to renew our strength even when we can't yet see His plan.

Larissa Traquair (33:44.839)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (33:57.66)

Amen, sis. And that's where I constantly go back to, God is only and ever good. And I don't have to like what's happening or even understand it, as you said earlier, but He is only and ever good. And that helps me when I think about another point we want to share is waiting can be simple willingness. Sometimes waiting isn't dramatic. It's quiet. It's the simple grace of being willing.

taking a deep breath, which I have to do a lot these days, and releasing the need to have everything figured out. Turning your attention to what's in front of you and giving God the space and time to work in ways you cannot see. It's that simple willingness and we have to get to that place, that place sometimes our pastor calls this, it's gonna take the most mature part of you to be willing.

to wait and to wait well.

Ginger Harrington (34:58.037)

Yeah, yeah. Friends, we did not say this was easy. But they're such blessing. Like this is a promise from the Lord. And it was a promise spoken to weary people and people who needed hope. so we have to hang on to, you know, it's such a thing to hang on to the scripture.

Larissa Traquair (35:03.633)

no.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm, yeah.

Ginger Harrington (35:23.603)

and hang on to the promises of God. They tell us so much about his good heart. So another thing that waiting can look like, it can look like activity. And as we said before, waiting feels like we're doing nothing, but sometimes waiting looks like doing the next right thing. Showing up, staying faithful, taking the next step again and again and again.

Larissa Traquair (35:29.64)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (35:45.385)

Mmm.

Ginger Harrington (35:54.014)

And this is what I often call active waiting. Sometimes waiting can be very busy. It's the everyday holiness of the faithfulness in little things. And we've done an episode on that recently. So we'll link that one in the show notes as well. It's choosing hope one more time, right in the middle of uncertainty. It's pressing on like a runner nearing the finish line.

Larissa Traquair (36:01.551)

Yes.

Ginger Harrington (36:23.879)

and that's so important. So friends, here's what I want you to see. None of these require that you feel strong first. They simply position your heart to receive strength from the Lord. And that's why these things turning to the Lord becomes such a habit of hope. Larissa, I know there's

Larissa Traquair (36:36.233)

Mm.

Ginger Harrington (36:53.019)

so much going on in your heart and in your life right now. Anything you want to share with us right now?

Larissa Traquair (37:01.737)

Yeah, I know as we've been talking, I've been thinking about what it would look like for me right now or what it looks like in real time to wait on the Lord in this season of grief. And for those who maybe don't know, my husband died almost six years ago. And recently I had to make the second hardest decision of my life since he died. And that was to say goodbye to Samson. And I know we've got a lot of animal lovers here.

who can relate, but he wasn't just a dog to me. He was the one that God used to help me transition. And it was really hard when you're having to make decisions by yourself. And of course I had the Lord and I had a great vet and I did have a couple of friends who said they could rush over and be with me, but in the moment it felt very lonely. so I'm one of the things as you were talking, I was thinking about my struggle probably really is surrendering.

my timeline. You know, it was really inconvenient. I know that's something that you can kind of laugh at at times, but I knew he was going to die someday. I mean, he was older and he's a dog, so he's going to die someday. But I had just finished up an amazing weekend of retreating with some sweet ladies here in my house. And Samson had the best weekend of his life. He got so much attention.

But as some of you know, after you do an event like that, you're just so emotional and you're tired and all of the things. So the timing just was really inconvenient. So what I'm really having to do is show myself grace and even in the wrestling, like it's okay to wrestle with the Lord. And I've been very honest, you know, as you were saying, some people say, I don't know, this is big enough for the Lord and boy, he gets the opposite from me. I bring it all to him.

you know, because it all matters. And so another way it looks like for me is I took the week off of doing a few normal things. So I just could have the freedom to rest more because I really didn't get to rest much after the retreat and having to go in and make the hard decision. And most days I'm just reminding myself to do the next right and small thing, as you mentioned.

Larissa Traquair (39:20.326)

I'm having to trust God in all of it even though I don't like any of it. Like there's no part of this that I like and this is releasing that expectation that we talked about that I have to like or agree even with God's timing, for example, and I still hope and trust in Him. It's that and also and it's not easy. I love that we continue to remind each other and those who are listening

God never promises that this is gonna be easy. And He knows ahead of time when all of this is gonna happen. And He knows that we're human and that this is really hard on us. And so that's kinda how it looks like right now, having to release my expectations and asking better questions. This is something that someone, I can't remember, you've probably said it to me, my therapist probably has, but sometimes it's asking the right questions instead of why now, Lord, I just hate this timing.

You know, it's that thinking about, okay, Lord, this really sucks and you are only and ever good. And I'm just trusting you to give me the strength to move forward one small step at a time. And it makes me think of our habit of hope this week. And that habit of hope is choose one simple way to wait on the Lord each day. To not try to choose all six of them, just choose one. Cause I can be one of those ones who's like, okay, let's fix it.

you know, make a super long list, let's do all these things. And instead, what's helping me is just choosing one thing. And here's what that could look like for y'all. A quiet prayer for strength when you feel overwhelmed. A moment of stillness before you reach for your phone. Releasing one expectation you've been holding too tightly to. Choosing to trust God in something you don't understand. Taking a deep breath.

which I said earlier, I have to do a lot right now, and being willing to let God work in His time, or simply doing the next right thing in front of you. And so Ginger, I'm so glad that we both felt compelled to do this and talk about this, because I know I'm not the only person struggling in this season. So share a little bit more with us on this habit of hope.

Ginger Harrington (41:41.77)

Well, I think that one of the things is this habit of hope is not, okay, here's how to be strong. You need to do this in order to be strong. It's simply whatever rhythm, whatever practice positions your heart to be focused on the Lord to receive his strength. And that just that trust piece of God has promised to renew my strength.

I'm going to trust him to do that. so whatever way helps you to do that today in this moment. And one of the things I love about this is it releases us from the pressure of making something happen.

Larissa Traquair (42:13.821)

Yeah.

Larissa Traquair (42:28.349)

Yeah.

Ginger Harrington (42:29.389)

And we just choose to wait on the Lord. Even in small, quiet ways, we're choosing hope. And that is always the right choice.

Larissa Traquair (42:40.284)

Yeah, so good Ginger.

Ginger Harrington (42:42.441)

Well, friend, let's, let's pray. And would you like to pray for us in this, in this, this topic?

Larissa Traquair (42:48.646)

Yeah, yeah, I would love to. Heavenly Father, you see every place where we feel weak today. You know the grief, the weariness, the quiet discouragement we carry. Would you teach us what it means to wait on you, to trust you, to turn towards you, to rest in your presence? And would you renew our strength, not all at once, but in the exact

ways we need. Help us walk forward with hope, even when it's one small step at a time. Amen.

Ginger Harrington (43:28.351)

Thank you, friend.

Friends, if you are walking through a season where your strength feels low, your hope feels low, I want you to remember this. God is not asking you to be strong enough for what you're facing. He's inviting you to come to Him, to wait, to hope, to trust, and to receive the strength that only He can give. Maybe not all at once, and maybe not for the whole road ahead, but for the next step, and then the next.

So wherever you are today, whether you're feeling like you're soaring or running hard or just barely walking, you're not alone. God is with you and he is your strength. So stay close to the one who gives you strength. One small step, one quiet moment of trust at a time and watch how he meets you there because hope is always our best habit.