When we go through hard times, it is helpful to find a therapist, a biblical counselor, or a spiritual director who can walk with us through the issues. Point us toward resources that might open a door for help or provide an a-ha moment of illumination.
It is also crucial to have praying people on our team. Folks who will keep our struggle confidential and intercede for us, then ask for updates as we process through the struggle. We sometimes forget that one of the main jobs of Jesus as he sits next to God is to pray for us.
A great resource is to search the scriptures for a verse of comfort or direction. Something we can memorize or carry around with us on a 3×5 card. A word of comfort. A phrase that reminds us of God’s sustaining power through words.
“But I the Lord will speak, and it shall be fulfilled without delay.” (Ezekiel 12:25 NIV).
Imagine that kind of power. When God speaks, it happens. Whatever God says, will be. We can depend on God to keep the promises he speaks.
As we learn more about the wholeness of God’s sustaining power and as we accept God’s actions on our behalf, we can also share sustaining words with others. Especially if they struggle with the same challenges we have faced. As we allow God to speak through us, the words of Isaiah ring true, “The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue to know the word that sustains the weary.” (Isaiah 50:4 NIV).
We can always make space in our souls to learn more about the sustaining words of Christ. To be sensitive enough to hear the divine whisper. To respond with grace for our own health and for the soul care of others. This is what it means to love others as we love ourselves.
Sometimes the best word we can offer is silence. To be that listening and confidential ear. A trusted advisor. A person of inner prayer as we listen for the heart’s cry of the person who struggles. Silence is sometimes the most powerful resource we can offer.
As we receive God’s sustaining power, then share that sustaining word, we learn to be even more aware of the Spirit speaking through us. So those sustaining words become our gifting as God uses our mouths and actions to help others — just as he sustains us.
©2026 RJ Thesman – All Rights Reserved
Image Attribution: geralt / Pixabay
To learn more about the power of words, check out Sustain Us, Oh Lord: Finding Strength When Life is Hard.