What a crazy world we are living in right now! I have been an emotional wreck this week and it took me a bit to figure out just why. This back to school thing is so daunting and I don’t even have any littles. My youngest graduated high school last year and I’m so grateful this is a hurdle I don’t need to cross.
Yet, I have friends who are teachers and teacher’s aides. And I have many friends, including all three of my sisters, who are mid-stride with deciding what to do this year with their school aged children. As I have had a myriad of conversations with each of these friends, I have felt their uneasiness. Every conversation has ended with, “I guess we’ll see what happens.” Every. Single. One.
All of us are living in a space that lacks comfort and lacks confidence. And my heart is right there with you. It’s not fair…but then, as my mother always said, life is not fair.
There is a story in the Bible about a woman who had an issue of blood. Perhaps you remember this story. This woman had been struggling with this issue for twelve whole years. She had seen so many doctors that she had no more money to spend seeking a cure and none of them had been able to help. She was at the end of her rope. She also was feeling that lack of comfort and lack of confidence. And then… Jesus.
I love this woman. She had so much faith that this stranger would be able to do what all the money and all the doctors could not, and she was willing to put herself out there, to offer up her heart.
She fought her fears and she fought the crowds to get to a place where she could reach out and touch the hem of His robe. She offered up her broken and wounded heart and He healed it. Her issue that no one else could heal, her faith and His power healed, as the scriptures say, IMMEDIATELY.
I love this story! It reminds me that even when I can’t see how anything will ever be normal again, when I wonder how my heart will be made whole and my fears set at rest, there is an answer, and His name is Jesus. But I must be willing to take my weaknesses, my fear, my insecurities and then seek Him out.
I can’t even tell you how many times I have approached Christ with my wounded and weary heart throughout my life. It seems like each time I have, I have wondered how He could possibly give me the peace that I need, so quickly forgetting my previous experiences with Him. And still, this does not stop Him. He may not choose to calm the storms in my life, but He is always capable of calming me.
Danielle Orner once said, “Life is a balance between what we can control and what we cannot. I am learning to live between effort and surrender.”
I love that! Whatever fears or self-doubts you are feeling at this time, I encourage you to take them to the Lord. Live in the space between effort and surrender. Allow Him to comfort and heal your heart and give you the strength and confidence to face this uncertain time. And through this action your children will also feel the calming influence that can only come from the Prince of Peace.
Get Hope. Get Christ. Get Anchored.
Below is a beautiful song called “Healer” by Kari Jobe.
