2 Corinthians 1:6 – So when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your benefit and salvation! For when God comforts us, it is so that we, in turn, can be an encouragement to you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. (NLT)

I have a friend who says she's a mountain climber, because she's always climbing out of deep valleys. Trouble seems to seek her out. There's always something painful going on in her life. Don't get the idea she's a pessimistic person. No, she's one of the most inspirational people I know. When trouble stalks her, she replies, "I'm climbing another mountain, and I can almost see the top. The Lord has another lesson for me to learn, so he's sending me on a mission up the mountain."

She is a living, breathing testimony to the power of God — not to the power of God ten years ago when He helped her climb a mountain, but to the power of God today that is helping her make this climb, giving her words of encouragement to speak and a reason to go on.

When I encounter a problem in my life, she's the first person I seek out for advice. I know she's been down in this valley and has climbed out. She offers me encouragement and tells me I can make it. She encourages me just to place my faith in the Lord and my spiritual eye on the mountain top. I can easily believe her. I know she's been there before me.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for these people who encourage and inspire us. Thank You for the struggles in our lives that make us stronger in the faith and bring us into a closer walk with You. Amen.

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