Have you ever had one of those mornings where you wake up shaking, hoping it was a nightmare, only to be reminded, yet again, that this is real life?
Sorry to be so blunt. But some days are like that. If you have been so blessed that you don’t yet know what I’m talking about, trust me you will.
Life will give you those times.
- Times of grief.
- Times of catastrophe.
- Times of abandonment, or fear, or depression.
Times when you quickly close your eyes again and hope to drift back into a dreamland where you don’t have to face reality.
Times when before you even kick the covers back you have to will yourself to enter a spot in your life story that is too hard, too scary, too painful, too heavy. Unbearable.
Because in nature, as my daughter likes to remind me:
“The life of man is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” (Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil).
That’s a dark perspective for an optimist like me.
What I love is to bring sunny encouragement and positive perspectives that help fortify and bolster, cheer and invigorate others on their journey. I like phrases like “new morning mercies” and “this too will pass” and “keep your chin up.”
But the longer I live the more I discover that it’s not always time for that. Sometimes people are in such a dark place that my sweet consolation ends up feeling more like a Triple D Maglite straight in the face, not the soft candle glow I intended.
I want to help my friends get through their hard times. I want to fix it. Fix their lives. Fix them. Offer hope and help and healing. But sometimes it’s not time for all that. Sometimes it’s time to just hush. And accept the unbearable reality of hard times.
- Times of waiting.
- Times of wrestling.
- Times of weeping.
No one likes those times. No one.
Yet just because times are hard doesn’t mean there isn’t hope. But hope oughtn’t come like a hammer. Hope doesn’t bang Bible verses against someone’s aching head and heart. Hope needs to come quietly and softly. Gentle and mild. Like a pillow for tears. A quilt for hiding. A bed for rest.
There are times when the promises of God are all that we have left. Faithful promises to hide under. Tender promises to rest on. Eventually, solid promises to stand on and walk on.
And I don’t know the end, or tomorrow’s story
–John Lucas, Time (definitely worth a listen, if you haven’t)
But I have found the one who gives me rest
And I will make my bed in His promises
For He holds true when nothing’s left
When nothing’s left
If you or someone you love is going through hard times:
Times of:
Grief.
Catastrophe.
Abandonment, fear or depression.
Times of:
Waiting.
Wrestling.
Weeping.
You aren’t alone. You are never alone. You don’t have to do anything but rest in His promises. He will see you through. He will hold true when nothing’s left.
…I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me (Psalm 63:6-8).
With hope,
Such comforting advice especially when we come along side someone who has struggled for so long and we want to make I all better. Thank you
Thank you Dixie. It’s so easy to do the easy thing, which is often not the best thing. <3