I Feel, But God Says: 22 Powerful “But God” Statements When Life Is Hard And Overwhelming

The journal entry began like this, “God, I don’t feel like I’m in a good place. While I know life isn’t always easy, I feel like my life has been one hard trial after another with little time to catch my breath. I try to seek after you with all my heart and not complain, but I’m really struggling not to feel trapped, hopeless, and overwhelmed with it all. When will I see answered prayers? When will I taste and see goodness? When will your light rise and shine on the darkness in my life?”

Life is hard, isn’t it? We try to wrap our minds around tough circumstances, but the confusion of not understanding leaves us more exhausted than before.

If that road sounds familiar to you, I want to reassure you – YOU’RE NOT ALONE. We have a God who sees the struggle, understands the pain, and is prepared to hold you through every wave.

But where do we run when circumstances seem impossible? When we struggle through seasons of pain, to whom do we turn?

After pouring out my heart to God that day, I ended my journal entry with a few truths we all need to shower with. As you read these, I pray God’s love and comfort washes over you like a mighty waterfall.

Life is hard, but God is my Deliverer.

• “There is no one like the God of Israel. He rides across the heavens to help you, across the skies in majestic splendor. Deuteronomy 33:26
• As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people both now and forevermore. Psalm 125:2
• The Lord is with me; He is my helper. Psalm 117:7
• They cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress. He brought them out of the darkness and deepest gloom and broke away their chains. Psalm 107:13-14

Life doesn’t make sense, but God makes sense of it all.

• “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” Psalm 32:8
• For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints. 1 Corinthians 14:33
• “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3

I feel trapped, but God will make a way out.

• Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19
• The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17
• Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations. Deuteronomy 7:9

I don’t understand, but God does.

• “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9
• ‘Call to me, and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ Jeremiah 33:3
• Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Romans 11:33

I don’t have the resources, but God owns everything and promises to provide.

• And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19
• For the LORD, God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11
• So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him. Matthew 7:11
• The earth is the LORD’S, and all it contains; the world, and those who dwell in it. Psalm 24:1

I can’t see the way, but God promises to lead me in it.

• Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalm 119:105
• “And the Lord will continually guide you, and satisfy your desire in scorched places, and give strength to your bones, and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail. Isaiah 58:11
• Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Psalm 25:4-5
• Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21

I feel scared, but God takes hold of my right hand and quiets my fear.

• So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10
• I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Psalm 16:8
• The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.  What can man do to me?  The Lord is with me; he is my helper. Psalm 118:6-7

I’m so tired and weary, but God is my Rock and strength.

• The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Psalm 9:9-10
• The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. Proverbs 18:10
• When I called, you answered me; you made me bold and stronghearted. Psalm 138:3
• My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalm 73:26
• He gives strenth to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Isaiah 40:29

I’m always sad, but God is my joy and salvation, the lifter of my head.

• Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10
• But you, LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high. Psalm 3:3
• Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Matthew 5:4

I’m brokenhearted, but God tends and mends the wounded heart.

• When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:17-20
• He heals the broken-hearted, and bandages their wounds. Psalm 147:3
• Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. Psalm 126:5

I feel alone, but God is always with me.

• You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. Psalm 32:7-8
• My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. Exodus 33:14
• Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. Psalm 139:7-10
• It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. Deuteronomy 31:8

I feel like a failure, but God will not fail to use even this.

• The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand. Psalm 37:23-24
• So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. Romans 8:1-2
• And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

I’m drowning, but God lifts me out of the deep pit and sets my feet on solid ground.

• When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. Isaiah 43:2
• I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. Psalm 40:1-2
• He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters. Psalm 18:16

I don’t feel I have a purpose, but God said my purpose was established before the world.

• For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and not for evil, to give you a future and hope. Jeremiah 29:11
• The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands. Psalm 138:8
• For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10

I feel unloved, but God loves me with unfailing, everlasting love.

• For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39
• For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him. Psalm 103:11
• May you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. Ephesians 3:18

I feel invisible, but God is El Roi, the One who sees my every move.

• You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. Psalm 139:2
• Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. Psalm 139:16
• You are the God who sees me… Genesis 16:13
• O Lord, you have searched me, and you know me. Psalm 139:1

I feel forgotten, but God has engraved my name on the palm of His hands.

• “Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.” Isaiah 49:15-16
• Oh Lord, you have searched me, and you know me. Psalm 139:1
• You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Psalm 139:3

I feel unheard, but God hears every thought, every unspoken cry.

• All my longings lie open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you. Psalm 38:9
• Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely, O Lord. Psalm 139:4
• The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. Psalm 34:15

I’m overwhelmed, but God is my helper and will not let me fall.

• My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven, and earth. He will not let your foot slip – He who watches over you will not slumber. Psalm 121:2-3
• When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. Psalm 94:19
• God is our refuge and strength; a well-proven help in trouble. Psalm 46:1

I feel rejected, but God calls me chosen.

• Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1
• Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me. Psalm 27:10
• For the LORD will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance. Psalm 94:14
• But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9

I’m so hurt, but God is my healer.

• Hear, LORD, and be merciful to me; LORD, be my help. You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy. Psalms 30:10-11
• LORD my God, I called to you for help, and you healed me. Psalms 30:2
• Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. He sent out his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave. Psalm 107:19

I feel like giving up, but God’s faithfulness strengthens me every morning.

• My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9
• The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. Lamentations 3:22-23
• My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life. Psalm 119:50

Whatever burden you’re facing, I pray these truths lift your eyes to the One strong enough to carry them.

I’d love to hear your “I feel___, but God ___!” Perhaps yours wasn’t listed above, leave me a comment, and I’d be happy to find your “but God” verse.