"That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man..." (Eph. 3:16)

We signed up for a hike with a ranger, who told us a remarkable thing. He said, "When a tree's life is threatened, stressed by the elements of fire, drought, or other calamity, it twists beneath its bark to reinforce and make itself stronger. On the surface, this new inner strength may not be visible, for the bark often continues to give the same vertical appearance. Only when the exterior is stripped away, or when the tree is felled, are its inner struggles revealed." (From Marilyn J. Abraham)

In our stress, grief, or hardship, God can strengthen us in ways which are not visible to the world.