Natalee's Blog

 “You can do anything for a minute!”

“Just one more set!”

“Only eight more singles!”

Either my weightlifting  class instructors are extremely motivating, or it really is easier to press on when I know the end is in sight.  

Usually, when I’m thinking I can’t push the barbell up one more time, and I hear one of those phrases, I can do it.

I got mad at an instructor who never gave those cues. The difference it made for the worse was amazing. I found myself thinking, This is too long. I can’t keep going! And I quit—a handful of reps before the set ended.

During those times when circumstances feel crushing—when stress and heartache feel like muscles ripping—I wish I could know when the season was ending. Couldn’t I endure a demoralizing work situation or an interminably long wait for a “yes” answer to prayer better if I knew when things would change? Honestly, probably not. I would not have wanted to hear in December 2009, “Hey, good job being unemployed for three months. You only have another nine to go!’

Unfortunately, my reaction to not knowing when a season of life will end is just like my response to the unencouraging weight-class instructor. Trust and hope—the responses I want to have—are hard during seasons of sifting.

I almost laughed as we stretched after one class when the instructor said, “Don’t you feel empowered?” No! I thought. I can’t even lean against my arm without it shaking!

But empowerment comes from doing the reps you don’t feel like doing. Believing the work you’re doing will make you stronger—even when you don’t hear that the end is in sight.

I definitely don’t go to weightlifting class to see how many reps I feel like doing. I do it to increase my strength. And I don’t (or at least, shouldn’t) let my emotions dictate what kind of person I am during a season. Victory comes through pressing on, making room for divine power to take over in my weakness. Because that way, I can do anything for a season.