Time of Rest

There are times in life where it feels like the waves of life come crashing in on us…

It can feel like someone has suddenly rained on our parade…

We can even feel stuck…

Do you know the feeling?

I do.

I have been in that place before.  In thinking about those moments, I realize that there are two option that I have.  I can choose to let life have its way and stay down in the dumps or I can choose to be active and do something about life.

In moments like this, I run to God.  I run as fast and as hard as I can because, whether the situation is big or small, I feel like I am suffocating.  Gasping for air, I reach my hands up an pray that He feels me reaching, drawing, pulling near.  Somehow, in the midst of my desiring a sense of relief, feeling overwhelmed, and stressing… I feel his presence.

This was one of those days.

Yesterday was lovely…a day to experience and share love…

Today reality hits…the new week reminds me of educational deadlines, choices, and requirements.

I had one child that didn’t feel well last week and now another woke up not feeling well this morning.

Laundry, dishes, meeting, papers, deadlines…these things and more attempt to weigh me down, but suddenly…I am reminded that although it feels like a lot…there are things that could make my life a lot worse.

I am grateful…

Still I will not minimize my own struggles…we all have them.  We all have our moments and in order to become better we have to identify what they are.

When I said “My foot slips,” Your mercy, O Lord, held me up.  In the multitude of my thoughts within me, Your comforts delight my soul. ~ Psalm 94:18-19

Will I let the fear of failure, the fear of not meeting the standard stifle me…stunt my growth, cause me to stand motionless…stressed…

Dare I say no?

Yet if that if that is my answer there is something I must do…

You give power to the faint; and to those who have no might, You increase strength. ~Isaiah 40:29

Father, I need your strength.

That mental struggle…It can drain us…the cares of this life coupled together with the outer circumstances that press in on us.  The relationships…the give and take…the desire to do and not to do…the requirements, both imposed by others and self-imposed…the calm and strife…all of this…becomes a burden…

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for our souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. ~Matthew 11:28-30

Rest for my soul…a lighter burden…

Today, like so many other days that have come before…I choose His way over mine.  I choose to breath and take in the rest that God has offered.  I choose to listen to the Holy Spirit within me that says I can and I will…the voice that says that there is no need to be afraid…

Today I choose which direction my ship will move in and I pray for the tools, the confidence, the strength, wisdom, discipline, the faith, and courage to do what I have to do…

Let us not minimize where we are in life.  Instead, let us approach each struggle with faith in God knowing that He cares about everything that we care about. (1 Peter 5:7) With the strength that we receive, let us move forward first from within…that is when we will begin to see the results that we desire.

It is my hope that my story encouraged you in some way and that I offered steps to help you overcome your struggle and get focused.

• Run to God
• Identify the struggle
• View the struggle as it is in your life (don’t minimize it or make it bigger than it really is)
• Make a choice to direct your own ship
• Pray for direction
• Plot the course and take action

Do you ever find yourself in this place…telling yourself that your struggles aren’t so bad because of how they compare to the rest of the world’s struggles, but never facing them head on to make the appropriate changes?  How do you deal with life’s struggles? Did you find this helpful?  I’d love to hear from you.