Hello all,
While studying abroad in Florence, Italy, I will be posting my thoughts and adventures on a new tumblr page. [ alexainflorence.tumblr.com ] Please follow me there, as you will find this blog sadly ignored. I’ll continue posting here in May.
Ciao mi amici!
May I live a story worth sharing.
“Marriage is two flawed people coming together to create a space of stability, love and consolation, a “haven in a heartless world”
(Source: relevantmagazine.com)
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
-Psalm 46:10
“Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O LORD. How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light.”
-Psalm 36:5-9
Amen.
We tend to romanticize things ahead to take our minds off the “nows.” Don’t.
He has you here, in this circumstance, in this season, in this trial, for a reason. Even if it just seems like a bad day, it’s where you live and it’s more real than anything.
Acknowledge what circumstances are causing you pain, heartache, frustration, impatience, anger. Walk through it, take a long run, cry if you need to, write it down, call a friend, read the Word out loud, meditate on promises, get on your knees. Be vulnerable with the Lord. Let yourself feel everything.
For our own health, we owe it to ourselves to process and feel even when it seems unbearable or undesirable. It’s easier than ever to avoid, seeing as we live in an age with every distraction possible. We’re beckoned to “take our mind off things” or “just forget it” by objects, entertainment, and other places of conditional joy. There’s no healing there.
Sure, it’s just a movie to relax and take your mind off the hard conversation you just had. It’s also a missed opportunity to face what you’re feeling and ask the Lord be the first easer of your soul. If we pray to, live, and believe in a Holy Spirit that has the power to heal, teach, and hold—-we should respond to our circumstances a whole lot better than with the short-term offerings of the world.
Take a deep breath, you can do it. I’m not saying tv, music, pinterest, books, a beer, anticipated vacation or any of those things are bad. I’m simply saying they won’t heal or fix.
We’ve got an unconditional God who wants us to face things and walk through the hard stuff with him. That’s where He builds character, fills us with grace, allows us to witness His favor, and sends us forward in wisdom. I’d take any of those over a mindless night of Hulu any day.
Be still. Let it hurt. Watch Him heal.
I’m still in your presence, but you’ve taken my hand. You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then you bless me. Psalm 73:23-25
(via strengthinwaiting)
