So… 2020?
Anyone else feel the weird sensation of emotional whiplash? It’s like we’ve spent the last four months dancing on a bed of anxiety coals on the edge of a cliff. Hearts are breaking. Folks are grieving. Voices are screaming. Voices are silent. Friends are angry. Brokenness is rife. Lots of people feel like their rights are being violated in different way.
And the noise, both inside and outside of us, increases our emotional unpredictability, our feelings of fragility, our quickness of temper, our wounds, etc.
I’ve been trying to sort through all of this “stuff” right now too. My heart grieves for so many reasons, for so many losses, for so many hateful words and actions and agendas.
I believe God is in control of all things. Even this.
I know He has plans that are working in ways that our minds can’t conceive because he sees eternity and we only see this moment. But God has also given us thinking minds and thinking hearts. He’s given us, through His Spirit, the ability to grow in grace in our actions and thoughts, and to increase our wisdom through His Word and our lives.
We are ACTIVE participants in the story God is telling right now.
Our compassion, our words, our stories MATTER right now, because light shines all the brighter in the darkness.
And our lights are made brighter when we fill our thoughts
and hearts with God’s truth and marinate our souls in His love. I need this for sure. I have a clearer mind, a sturdier heart, and a deeper well of compassion, when I’ve filled my mind with things like:
- Who God is (Creator, Sustainer, Redeemer, Strong Tower, Provider, Conquering King…etc)
- Who I am because of Him (My identity is in Him and his overwhelming love)
- Who my fellow humans are in light of what the Bible says (image-bearers of God)
- What God says about His world and His people (He’s got it under control
I NEED Jesus to help me not become overwhelmed by all the ‘stuff’. And maybe you do to?
So here are a few things I’m trying to remind myself to do:
1. I need to pray more – prayer puts my heart and my head in the right direction.
Peppy, this is powerful stuff. I am guilty as anyone of taking my eyes off Christ in these crazy times. We’ve been fortunate — nobody close to us has died or even gotten the virus, we’re both still working, and I Don’t Have To Homeschool A Child. But the anxiety still creeps in around the edges and chips away at my sanity. We need to keep focused on Christ, see what we can do for others — and if we’re writers, keep writing! My current WIP has an interracial romance, white woman, Native man, and I am going back over it with a fine-tooth comb, nay, a set of tweezers, to see if there’s any hint of unconscious racism. Because if I do it right, it will shed a lot of light. thanks for a great post, talk to you soon,
Kathy Bailey
All good reminders of ways we can navigate these interesting times by trusting in our great and loving God. Appreciate your faithfulness to use the voice God has gifted you to speak such goodness. 😊