Bent but Never Broken

2 Corinthians 4:8 (NIV) ⁸ We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;

            Some days I feel like the tree in my backyard. Living in Texas we normally get one good cold snap each year. Snow falls, ice forms, children cheer and school lets out for the day. Each year “the whisper tree”, (as my children affectionately call it) bends under the weight of the ice and snow. It seems that our beloved tree will be broken, leaving nothing for the children to play on in the spring. Yet, so far the tree has never lost a limb or broken from the experience. It just bends under the weight of the pressure. Every spring is stands proud and beautiful in the center of our back yard.  This is very much how my soul feels at times. Forgetting to cry out to God for help in time of trouble, I try to shoulder the burden alone. Why do we believe that we must carry the burden of this world on our shoulders; letting our soul’s be pressed and pressed until it feel like we will be crushed under the weight of it all? Do you find yourself in despair, broken hearted? I do at times. The hurt is so real, while not physical pain, my heart aches and cries out for help. Yet I continue to try to carry the burdens of this life, this world. They are not my own. The message that God wants us all to understand, believe and continually say about Him is this… “I will say of the LORD, ’He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust’”, Psalm 91:2. So remember we might be hard pressed and bent but we are never broken during the winters of this life if we do not despair but put our trust in the Lord. Spring is coming, and we will all stand proud and beautiful just like my tree, reminded of God’s strengthening and love for us.