Slideshow image

FASTING DAY 4 / 5

WHEN STRENGTH RUNS OUT, GOD REMAINS

Depending on the type of fast you are doing, right around this time is when your body is screaming at you to submit to its demands…FOOD. 

Where all your strength has run out…but what an opportunity to “strike a blow” to our bodies! (1 Cor 9:27)

There are seasons where encouragement doesn’t come from a verse on a coffee mug or a well-timed word.

It comes from the simple fact that you’re STILL STANDING, even when, by all accounts, you shouldn’t be.

I want to speak plainly today, especially as we are fasting, praying, and leaning into intimacy with the Father.

I want to share something close to my heart, close to the heart of the Kitchens’ family, and by using us as an example, not to elevate ourselves, but to magnify GOD’S SUSTAINING GRACE. I am praying that in some way, it helps you grab hold of the truth that GOD IS WITH YOU!

There are times when _________  is so heavy, it feels as if it’s crushing.

For The Kitchens, the “________”  I’ll be speaking of today is two-fold. 

First fold, the Lord has graciously called us to plant an oak tree (The OAK Church) and to tend and nurture it. 

The heart of a shepherd is a heavy one, alone, but to be doing it from the ground up with no “backing” of a denomination is a force multiplier.

The pressures that come with shepherding people, carrying vision, and trusting God daily for provision for the OAK body are heavy. I can literally laugh and cry at the same time (no, I’m not losing my marbles, promise). It’s just a part of trench warfare…mountains and valleys…sharing in the hearts of the sheep. 

These pressures are not carried just by Nina and me, but also by my girls as well, and my heart hurts for them often. 

Sometimes, I have to admit, I am selfishly envious of the evangelists who travel from church to church, town to town, and can preach a fiery message and then head on to the next town.

This weight alone breaks families:

Studies consistently show:

  • 40–60% of pastors report chronic emotional exhaustion and burnout
  • 50–70% of pastors’ spouses report feeling lonely, unseen, or secondary to the church
  • 25–45% of pastoral families experience severe marital strain or near-collapse at some point, especially in church planting.

The second fold: At the same time we are raising a daughter who has been diagnosed with Level 3 autism (the most severe).

That brings constant vigilance. Chronic exhaustion. Unknowns about the future. Moments of grief layered with deep love. And carrying a responsibility that never turns off.

Research shows:

  • 50–70% of families raising children with severe autism report sustained marital or family distress
  • 30–40% experience separation, near-divorce, or significant relational fracture at some point

This isn’t because parents don’t love their children. It’s because the load is relentless.

”We were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself.” (2 COR 1:8) 

I KNOW there have been many who have felt that passage deep in our core!

When these two weights collide, the pressures don’t just add; they compound.

Statistically speaking, families that carry both weights are at high risk of collapse.

BUT WE ARE NOT A STATISTIC, WE ARE THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD IN CHRIST!

And I want to be clear about something:

If we are still standing…

If we are still loving one another…

If we are still showing up, still believing God is good, still serving His people…

It is NOT because we are exceptional.

It is NOT because we are strong enough.

It is NOT because we figured something out.

IT IS BECAUSE GOD IS SUSTAINING US (I cannot repeat this enough)

The miracle is not that everything is easy…it isn’t.

The miracle is that our hearts haven’t grown hard and that despair hasn’t won!

And it is ALL HELD BY THE FATHER OF LIGHTS, in whom there is no variance or shifting of shadows!

Scripture says,

“Unless the Lord had been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence.” (Psalm 94:17)

That verse isn’t poetic to us. It’s real.

This fast is not about proving discipline and the prayer isn’t transactional.

This season is about intimacy — because intimacy is where strength comes from when strength is gone.

Some days the victory isn’t joy.

Some days the victory is faithfulness.

Some days the victory is simply getting up and trusting God for the next step.

If you’re reading this and carrying something heavy…whether anyone sees it or not, I want you to hear this clearly:

You are not weak for needing God.

You are not failing because you’re tired.

AND YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!!

If you are still standing, still believing, still loving — God is holding you too.

This is not grit…there’s a time for grit.

This is grace.

And grace is more than enough for today.