Escape Hatch

"This is an important point to understand.

We said before that God always gives us an "escape hatch."

No matter how great our pain, he always gives us a way to make it through the storm with our mind, heart, and soul fully intact.

But even with an escape hatch, some effort on our part is always required.

We still have to reach up, turn the valve, push open the hatch, and lift ourselves through the opening.

What sometimes happens, unfortunately, is that people get into a pattern of not using the escape hatch God provides.

They fail to reach out to God through prayer, even in their times of greatest suffering.

Or they fail to reach out to the people God sends their way to help them during those dark days.

If this becomes enough to a habit over a period of years, then it is possible for these people to feel overwhelmed and trapped when their moment of tribulation comes.

In those cases, they may not see the emergency exit God has given them—even though it might be right in front of their eyes.

They may sincerely feel that for them there is "no way out," that for them there is "no hope."

And they may never escape.

What becomes of these tormented souls?

They become irrevocably harmed, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually.

Their pain suffocates them—not for months, or years, or decades, but forever.

Some people go through a divorce or a breakup and are never able to love again.

Some people are paralyzed in a car accident and are never able to enjoy life again.

Some people lose a close relative or friend and are never able to believe in God again.

The saddest people are those who, depressed for one reason or another, turn completely in on themselves, lose all hope, and are finally driven to the loneliest death of all—suicide.

No one is saying that these people consciously or freely choose their fate, or that God is going to hold them strictly accountable for their actions.

It all depends on the inner state of a person's soul—and only God can see that.

Knowing how kind the Lord is, it is probably poor men and women like these on whom he bestows the most mercy.

All we're saying here is that every one of the horrible outcomes I've mentioned could have been avoided.

Even the worst thunderstorm doesn't have to result in a car crash.

Even the cruelest death doesn't have to result in the loss of a person's faith.

Even the most severe case of clinical depression doesn't have to result in a suicide.

God always gives us a way out.

It may not be easy, but it's always possible.

God always says yes to the prayer "Get me through this Suffering.

But we have to Ask!"

From "The 10 Prayers God Always Answers "

Stay Strong!