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Saturday, March 26, 2011

Here in hard...

Life is hard right now.

It is. It happens. People die and you mourn. Jobs disappear and you scramble. Communities disintegrate and you rebuild. You get lost and you wander. You get sick and you suffer.

And so we are mourning. And scrambling. And rebuilding. And wandering. And suffering. 

We are here. In the valley where the mountaintop is a distant memory. Here. Where the waves keep crashing over our head. Here. In the desert where we are dry and thirsty. 

And it is a gamble to share here in such a public forum. It is uncomfortable to read. It is uncomfortable to type. But here… there is too much to be silent.

Because it is here that you understand you are more than your circumstances. That you were made for more than treading…getting by. 

And because among the muck and the mire…there is beauty. It’s up ahead. Just beyond the distance. Around the corner. And even in the midst...

Here there is pain that compels you to heal. Need that spurs you to give. Hurt that begs to give comfort. Loneliness that draws you out to befriend.

So we mourn, scramble, rebuild, wander and suffer… with thankfulness. Not because it isn’t hard…but because we are not hardened.

Instead… thankful that we loved enough to miss. That we worked hard enough to taste the fruits of our labor. Thankful that we invested enough that lonely is foreign. Thankful that we believed enough to not look back along the way. And thankful that we knew what it was to be alive and whole. 

But still we have questions. Epic questions.

Questions that might have more than one right answer. Or might be missing the point. Or might be exactly the point.

So we pray them. And search our souls. And shout to the universe. And whisper to each other. 

And we wait. Not just to endure but be propelled. To be refined. To be wiser. To be different. No matter how hard it is here…

4 comments:

  1. I've been wanted to write...a post...to capture what I'm feeling right now. You just did for me. Thanks, and now I don't have to:) Holding on to what I know is truth, what is real, and what we are. Just because circumstances change, does not change the path God has for us. Praying for your family and believing God has great things in store for all of you!!!

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  2. You have written your heart, Amanda. In doing so, there is no shame, but a release because once written, it lets you look at it. Actually it's great therapy, but when you make it public, you have just served a ministry by helping others. They know they are not alone and that you pick yourself above it and Rejoice in the Fire. It's easy to Praise God and keep your eye on Him when you are on the mountain top. But He pulls you closer to Him when you are in the valley. He shows us at one time in our life that He is really all there is, no one else can help, but He is still there. The Lord gave you 5 gifts to walk this valley with you and for that I know you recognize 5 miracles amidst all the other sad things. In His Love PJ

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  3. Honest writing does indeed clear our heads and give God room to speak love and healing and leading. We may weep in the valley, but Joy Comes in the Morning. The Lord Jesus is even now interceding for all 6 of you, and the valley is the growth factor we all face at times in life. His still small voice will lead you to the victory mountain. Blessings from Grandma Barbara

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  4. I felt like I was out there in the ocean with you as the waves crashed over our heads and sent us pounding to the ocean floor, and the tide pushed us to the edge of the sand...where we stood, and stumbled to safety as we collapsed in the sand and tried to catch our breath and recover our strength.

    Yes,...life is sometimes like that...for sure.
    Times of loss and heartache. Times of fear and pain and sickness. But the Lord is there through it all...and He will not leave us...but will walk beside us through the storms.

    I know from personal experience...and I praise Him that we never walk alone!

    May His loving arms surround you as you lean against Him in your sorrows. He loves you...and He always will.

    God bless and keep you.

    Linda @ Truthful Tidbits

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