Why Is Life So Hard When You’re Following God’s Will?

Have you ever sung the song “I’m taking back what the enemy stole” and felt hyped up?

Yes! I’m taking back ground that was stolen from me. I’m demolishing those hellish strongholds in my life. I’m going to see a victory!

And then, literally that same day, you find yourself coming up against attack after attack?

Have you ever found yourself in a season where you are walking by faith and doing what you know the Lord has called you to do, but you keep wondering, Why is everything so hard?

I know I have found myself wondering this. I have stepped out into the calling I know God has placed on my life and then watched as without fail, disaster would strike right after my moment of obedience. I have found myself wondering, If God really called me to this, wouldn’t He protect my journey? Wouldn’t He guard my feet as I walk down the path He has placed before me?

Recently, I was reading Nehemiah 4:17–18:

“Those who were building on the wall… labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built.”

That image stopped me.

They were obediently rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and still found themselves having to fight at the same time.

Nehemiah had been sent to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls of the city. He wasn't acting outside of God's will. In fact, God had clearly opened the door for him. King Artaxerxes gave him permission to go, provided what he needed, and Nehemiah had seen God's hand of favor throughout the process.

And yet, almost as soon as the rebuilding began, enemies appeared. Maybe you have experienced something similar. It’s Satan’s MO (mode of operation). Once you obey, his tactic seems to be, How hard can I make this so they will give up and stop obeying?

Nehemiah’s enemies threatened, mocked, plotted against the builders, tried to discourage them and stop the work.

Nehemiah could have reasonably wondered, God, didn't You send me here? Didn't You give me favor? Didn't You make a way for this work to happen? Then why is it so difficult to actually do what You called me to do?

But perhaps the presence of opposition wasn't evidence that Nehemiah had missed God's will. And perhaps the presence of opposition in your faith walk isn’t evidence of miss-hearing God either.

Perhaps it was evidence that the work mattered. Spiritually. Physically. Eternally.

The walls were being rebuilt. God's people were being strengthened. Jerusalem was being restored.

And the enemy didn't like it.

Building your own life, walking in God’s will, stepping out in faith to be authentically the person He created you to be, will be met with resistance. Not because anything is wrong, but because that work is sanctifying and sacred.

I think there are seasons in our lives when we need to understand this: being in the will of God does not mean being free from opposition.

Sometimes God calls you to build while you're also fighting.

You're rebuilding your marriage while fighting discouragement and old patterns of relating to each other that don’t work anymore..

You're raising your children while fighting for your family's peace.

You're stepping into obedience while fighting against all the fear and discouragement.

You're growing spiritually while fighting old patterns and temptations.

You're writing the book, starting the ministry, sharing your testimony, setting healthy boundaries, or pursuing the thing God has placed on your heart… and suddenly it feels like everything is fighting against you.

That doesn't necessarily mean you are on the wrong path.

Sometimes, you are simply building something the enemy does not want built.

God could have prevented the attacks against the walls of Jerusalem. He could have removed every enemy before Nehemiah ever picked up a stone.

But He didn't.

Instead, He taught His people how to keep building while they kept watch.

And maybe that's the word some of us need today.

Don't mistake opposition for abandonment.

Don't assume difficulty means God has stopped leading you or caring for you.

And don't put down your tools just because you have to pick up your sword.

Keep building. Keep praying. Keep obeying. Keep growing. Keep your sword, the Word of God, at your side.

Because sometimes the season God is using to rebuild you will also be a season in which you have to actively fight against the things that want to tear you back down.

Psalm 126 says:

“Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.”

There may be tears in the sowing.

There may be resistance in the rebuilding.

There may be battles along the way.

But that does not mean there won't be a harvest.

So if you're in a season where you're building with one hand and fighting with the other, don't be discouraged.

You may be more deeply in the middle of God's work than you realize.

Keep building.
Keep fighting.
Keep trusting.

The enemy may be trying to stop what God is rebuilding, but he doesn't get the final word.

Today, I’m praying that you and I would have the boldness and courage to keep pursuing God’s will no matter how loud the enemy’s taunts try to persuade us to stop.

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