Strength for Women Carrying More Than Most People Know
The Weight Nobody Sees
There comes a point in every woman’s life when she realizes she’s been carrying battles no one ever witnessed. Smiling through pressure. Showing up when her heart was tired. Holding her family together while quietly praying her own soul wouldn’t unravel. Some of us mastered strength early. We learned how to function while wounded. How to lead while exhausted. How to be dependable even when we desperately needed someone to lean on.
And for women of color, that weight can feel even heavier — not because we’re weak, but because we were taught to endure. To be resilient. To keep going. Culture celebrated our toughness, but rarely made room for our tenderness. We became strong because we had to be. Responsible because someone else dropped the ball. Composed because falling apart didn’t feel like an option.
But here’s what Heaven never missed: God saw it all.
He saw the quiet tears you wiped before walking back into the room. He saw the discipline you didn’t brag about, the faith you kept quiet, the prayers you whispered at night. He calls you higher because heaven has already confirmed what life tried to bury — you are chosen for more. He saw the nights you lay awake thinking through solutions for everyone else while your own questions lingered unanswered. Psalm 56:8 (NLT) reminds us, “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” Nothing about your strength has been invisible to our Heavenly Father.
The Stretching Season
The call to go higher always comes with a stretch. Not the gentle kind, but the kind that makes you wonder if God is pulling you past your limit. You feel it in your emotions, in your schedule, in your responsibilities, in the quiet places of your soul. And here’s the part most people don’t see — sometimes the stretch doesn’t look spiritual at first. It looks like being tired but still showing up. It looks like pushing through when you’d rather shut down. It looks like carrying the weight of being dependable, capable, and strong even on days when your strength feels like it’s running out.
But the stretch is not punishment — it’s preparation. God stretches you so He can settle you — firmly, securely, and with wisdom you couldn’t have gained any other way. This is why Habakkuk 3:19 (NLT) speaks so powerfully: “The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.” God is expanding your capacity. And while others may only notice the pressure, God sees the potential growing underneath it all.
When You’re Called Higher, the Enemy Pushes Harder
Anytime God calls you higher, the enemy tries to pull you lower. It’s not your imagination, and it’s not just a “rough week.” The moment God starts expanding you, the enemy starts targeting you. He goes after your peace, your confidence, your clarity, your focus — anything he thinks might slow you down. And he does it subtly. Not with obvious attacks, but with the small things that build up: the sudden irritation, the unexpected setback, the emotional heaviness you can’t explain, the thoughts that whisper, “Maybe this isn’t your season after all.”
But here’s what you have to remember: the enemy only pushes hardest where God is elevating. Pressure is a sign of movement. Resistance is a sign of purpose. And spiritual pushback is often confirmation that you’re walking in the right direction. This is why Scripture says in 1 Peter 5:10 (NLT), “In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.”
You are not being attacked because you’re weak — you’re being attacked because you’re chosen. And every push from the enemy is matched by a greater pull from God. He’s securing you, strengthening you, and preparing you to stand in places your previous season could not hold.
You’re Built for Higher Ground
When God calls you higher, He never leaves you to climb on your own. Even in the stretching, even in the pressure, even in the moments when you’re carrying more than anyone around you realizes — He is strengthening you for the very place He’s leading you into. What feels heavy right now is not a sign that you’re failing. It’s a sign that God sees more in you than you’ve ever seen in yourself.
Isaiah 40:29 (NLT) tells us, “He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless.” That means the call upward is not fueled by your exhaustion. It’s fueled by His supply. God does not elevate you to expose your limits. He calls you higher to introduce you to His sufficiency.
It’s not because you’ve proven you can carry more. It’s not because you’re the strongest in the room. It’s because He’s ready to reveal the strength He placed in you long before the world started demanding it. The higher call is not an assignment to strain harder. It’s an invitation to rely deeper.
So don’t shrink. Don’t second-guess the grace that’s covering you. Don’t let the enemy convince you that you’re not equipped. You are walking with a God who restores, supports, and establishes you — and every step you take is evidence that His hand is on your life.
You are moving toward higher ground… and God is making sure you have the strength to stand when you get there. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“When God Calls You Higher: Strength for Women Carrying More Than Most People Know”, written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2026. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to encouraging and inspiring Christian Women to live boldly through God’s Word.
