Finding Hope When Everything Feels Like Its Burning

Have you ever felt that bone-deep weariness that makes even the smallest things in life feel like mountains? 

That mental, emotional, and spiritual exhaustion that settles in like summer fog, leaving you not just tired but feeling hopeless?

First, know this: you're not weak, lazy, or broken – you're beautifully, perfectly human. 

And you're certainly not alone.

 This kind of tiredness doesn't always come with a neat explanation, but it deserves acknowledgment and gentle care. 

Remember the days you didn't think you'd make it through? Yet here you are, still breathing, still moving forward. That's not just survival; that's quiet courage.

Even just wanting to feel better is a sign of hope stirring within you. 

Hope doesn't always announce itself with fanfare – sometimes it whispers "try again tomorrow" in the shade of kindness, in a friend's voice, or in the simple act of showing up for your own life when it's hardest. Today might not look like growth on the surface, but trust that beneath it all, God is healing you.

You're not behind or failing; you're becoming stronger, more compassionate, more the person that God designed you to be. Better days are coming. You're doing better than you think, and God sees your effort, He sees your struggle, and - more importantly - He sees your heart.

If you found comfort in these words, please share this podcast with someone who might need encouragement today. 

And remember, you can always download the WPER app for more encouragement whenever you need it most.

Let us know what you think - send us a text here!!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Well, hey great, You're enjoying the 5-Minute
Encouraging Podcast.
If you need more encouragementat the end of this 5 minutes,
you can always listen toVirginia's Home for
Encouragement WPER.
If you're outside thatlistening area, download the app
and find it.
Where you get your apps, Justsearch WPER.
Thank you for hitting pause inthis noisy world.

(00:23):
We're glad you pressed playtoday.

Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yeah, we are, whether you're sitting in a stuffy room
, walking through the swelteringheat or just emotionally worn
down, this moment, well, it'sfor you.
So first let's breathe right,inhale and exhale.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
There you go, a little breathing exercise.
It is hot, yeah, summertime,yeah, heavy, and some days,
especially like this now, itfeels like the world could be
pressing down on you, not justfrom the sun, but from the
inside out.

Speaker 2 (00:52):
Yeah, and you might feel tired for no reason.
Might even be a little extracranky, maybe you're just
totally unmotivated and, likeyou know where the smallest task
just feels like a completemountain right now.
We're where the smallest taskjust feels like a complete
mountain right now.
We're going to tell you a truthYou're not weak, you're
definitely not lazy and you arenot broken.
Surprise, you're human and knowthis you're not alone.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
No, you're not, and you know this kind of weariness
doesn't always have a neatexplanation for any of us.

Speaker 2 (01:19):
Yeah, this is the kind of tired that like it
settles into your bones right,it's mental, it's emotional,
it's spiritual and in the heatof the summer that kind of feels
like it can sneak in like a fog, and then suddenly you're not
just hot but you're hopeless.

Speaker 1 (01:32):
Here's what we want you to hear today, clearly and
deeply.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
This season won't last forever, and neither will
this feeling.

Speaker 1 (01:39):
Yeah, you know those might sound like just a bunch of
words and maybe you've heardthat before, but it's true.

Speaker 2 (01:45):
Yeah, think back.
Think back because there havebeen days before today, days you
thought you wouldn't make itthrough, but you're still here.
You made it.
You kept going, even when youdidn't feel brave.
You were because God helped youthrough the day, and maybe
today the only brave thing youcan do is just keep breathing
and look.
That's okay, that's enough.

Speaker 1 (02:04):
Yeah, and on days like this, when you think about
it, it's the small victoriesthat matter more than ever.

Speaker 2 (02:09):
Oh, if you got out of bed today, victory.
If you drank some water today,victory.
Yep, if you resisted the urgeto be cruel to yourself and your
thoughts, okay, that's a hugevictory.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
Yeah, major one there .

Speaker 2 (02:20):
And even if you just wanted to feel better, well,
that's a sign of hope that'swaking up inside of you.
And guess what that's?

Speaker 1 (02:27):
a victory.

Speaker 2 (02:28):
Yes, it is Because hope, hope is what we hold on to
here.
The hope of Jesus is what keepsus going.

Speaker 1 (02:35):
Now maybe you're looking around and thinking
what's there to hope for?
Maybe the world feels like it'sburning, literally and
figuratively.
I hear you, heather, hears youIn the smallest corners of life.
Hope, lives.
There's always hope.

Speaker 2 (02:49):
Oh, there's always hope.
The hope that we have in Jesussometimes lives in shade, right
In kindness, in the sound of afriend's voice or even a
stranger holding the door openfor you.
It lives in a cold glass oflemonade and the quiet strength
of just showing up in your ownlife, even when it's hard going
to God and saying I can't dothis, because hope doesn't

(03:11):
always roar right.
Sometimes it whispers.
Try again tomorrow.

Speaker 1 (03:16):
And tomorrow will come.
Might not bring instant change,but it does bring another
opportunity, another breath,another step forward.
So if you feel like quitting,like giving up, don't Not today.

Speaker 2 (03:26):
Not today.
Rest, if you have to Turn offthe noise.
Sit in the shade, physically,mentally, metaphorically.
Drink some water, put your handon your heart and say, okay,
I'm still here, I'm still trying.
God still has a plan for me,because he does.
Eric, and I see that effort,sure, but so does God, yeah,
you're not behind, you're notfailing.

(03:48):
No, you're becoming.
You're becoming stronger,you're becoming more
compassionate, you're becomingmore the person God designed you
to be.

Speaker 1 (03:56):
And listen.
If today doesn't look likegrowth, trust that it is
happening.

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Yeah, he's at work and sometimes healing looks like
hot days and stillness right.
It looks like nothing, butunder the surface God is working
, he's stretching, he's quietlypreparing you for better days.

Speaker 1 (04:13):
Yeah, they're coming.

Speaker 2 (04:14):
Hang in there.
You're doing better than youthink, and you're not alone.
God sees you.

Speaker 1 (04:18):
Hope you've been encouraged.
If you know someone that mightneed encouragement from this
particular podcast today, wouldyou send that to them?

Speaker 2 (04:25):
Oh, please.

Speaker 1 (04:25):
And you can always download the WPER app to listen
if you need more encouragement,and you can always listen to
Virginia's Home forEncouragement, wper.