I was in college when I first began to seriously wrestle with faith. Raised in an atheist household, I had become a Christian in high school, much to the dismay of my father, who warned me of the dangers of organized religion. He believed faith was a crutch for the weak. I believed something deeper was calling me.

Still, I had doubts—real ones. I was tired of performance-based faith and church-as-a-show. So, I sought counsel from the only professor I knew who genuinely walked with Jesus, not just on Sundays but every day. His words were simple, yet profound:

“It’s as simple as believe or don’t believe. As a child, you placed blind faith in Santa Claus to bring gifts. While Santa isn’t real, Saint Nicholas and Jesus Christ are historical figures. And it’s not just about believing that Jesus existed—even the demons believe that. Faith is placing your trust in what He did: His sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection. Because without the Resurrection, there would be nothing to talk about. But every single witness believed it so deeply that they were willing to die before denying what they had seen.”

That conversation cracked something open in me.

We live in a world that is both stunningly beautiful and heartbreakingly broken. People suffer. People grieve. People smile while secretly feeling lost. We compare our pain to someone else’s highlight reel and wonder what’s wrong with us. But pain is not a punishment; suffering is not always a consequence of wrongdoing. It is simply part of this fallen world.

During this Advent season, as we light candles in expectation of Christ’s birth, it is important to remember that Jesus didn’t come to earth to offer us comfort and ease; He came to offer us salvation and peace in the midst of the storm.

He came for the hurting, for the anxious, for the ones asking hard questions. He came for those sitting in the dark, longing for light.

Advent reminds us that we are not alone in our waiting. God entered our pain. He took on flesh. He did not stay distant.

So here’s your Tuesday Tip:
Take your heartache, your tears, your unanswered questions, and your deepest fears, and lay them at the foot of the cross and beside the manger. He sees it all. He knows the ache you carry. And He doesn’t turn away from your suffering; He steps into it.

Faith is not the absence of doubt.
Faith is choosing to trust anyway.
Faith is not pretending you’re fine.
Faith is placing your hope in the One who holds it all together, even when you feel like you’re falling apart.

And if you’re struggling with depression or anxiety this season, please know this: you are not weak. You are not forgotten. You are living in a weary world that desperately needs a Savior, just like the rest of us.

You don’t have to earn God’s love.
You don’t have to perform to be accepted.
You don’t have to have it all figured out to be embraced by grace.

This Advent, come as you are.
Bring your burdens to the Christ who came to carry them.
Rest in the truth that He came for you.