Friday, 24 June 2016

Take a deep breath in.


The door opens and closes. 
I'm home. 
I sit down. 
I heavily sigh. 
Typing, typing, typing rapidly. 
Pause. 
Delete. Delete. Delete rapidly. 
Walk away. 
Sleep and wake up.
Repeat. 
Home.
Sit down.
Typing, typing, typing, more.
Pause.
Heavier sigh. 
Deleting, deleting, deleting more.
Backspace. Backspace. Backspace. 
Both on the keyboard and in my life. 
A sigh again.  As always, not of release. Not of rejuvenation. Not of breathing in. But of letting out. 
Constantly letting out. 

Until one day, I may have no more to let out. To give out. To let go of. 
I can only sigh and push out air so many times in a row without ever taking in.
Weighed with stress, discomfort and confusion. 
Until I eventually will become extremely desperate for air. Fresh air. 

God, how much longer will I not be able to breath in? 
How much longer will I only breathe out and backspace, backspace, backspace further into my discouragement.  

I need to breathe in. 
I need the power. The strength to reverse the continuous sighing of despair. The repeatedly breathing out and never taking in. 

I need to hit enter somewhere. I need a return to clarity. To hope. To passion and purpose. I need a shift that capitalizes You in my life. That caps lock You and Your plan and what my role is in all this. 

There needs to be a shift. An alt in my daily life. I know you are in command and You've got in under control even though all I feel is delete, delete, delete.  Even though the pressure to tab into a new window and look somewhere else is there. I know You're here. 

After days, weeks, months of growing intensity in confusion and despair. In aloneness. In a state of only becoming more and more desperate for air. 

Then it came. So simply. Yet so profoundly. 

I was finally able to breathe in. Sitting there, a got a glimmer of hope. I got a small taste of community. As I continued to sit there listening to the exchange of ideas, inspirations, and hope, I felt myself breathe. And it came so easily. So easily that I couldn't help but notice. After breathing in came forced only for mere survival for so long, I could take a deep breath in. I felt inspired. I felt comforted that I was not alone. Like I was no longer surviving, but living vibrantly. 

That there are people like me. That feel the same way I do. That get it. That together, will find a way to be heard and understood. 

Community. A huge breath of fresh air. A weight off my shoulder. Something that created more typing and no deleting. 

Here's to my first post in awhile. One of hope. One I didn't sit down to write and ultimately delete and walk away, knowing it only contained my frustrations and confusion in the moment. 

Here's to positivity. This is the good life to live. And it's even more refreshing with a community to share it with. 

The future does look bright.

So if you're feeling alone and discouraged. Find community. I need you. You need me. 

Take a deep breath in. And move forward. 







Wednesday, 13 April 2016

Peace is Trust

Peace.
It's a beautiful golden sun settling down into a watery horizon.
It's the rolling waves creating that perfect sound to soothe every one of your senses. 
It's the salty air clearing out the lungs and refreshing the mind.
Peace. 
It's easy to feel when life is a vacation on the beach. 
When you can sleep through the night without any trouble.
When you've got everything under control. 
When your kids are healthy and safe. 
When your mind is at ease and relaxation comes without being forced. 
When your spouse isn't stressed about tomorrow. 
When you feel God always near you. 
Peace. 
So easily attainable when everything is right. 
When everything is good. happy. calm. 
When you and everything you hold dear is right and well. 
When you made the right choice.
Peace. 
For most of us, life isn't always soft sand warming our toes. 
Life doesn't permit us to rest in the sun, free of worries. 
Some of us haven't always lived on a foundation of cushioning sand. 
Some of us have had to find peace without the sunset on the beach. 
Thank God.
Because if life was always picture perfect,
Then growth, learning, and developing from challenges would never happen.
A perfect sunset. White foam curling up on the shore. Blue water rolling in. Salty mist. 
These things cannot be appreciated if it's always been there.
Sometimes, appreciation for something only comes when you experience life without it for a time. 
Sometimes, we only learn to place value on something when we have the opposite to compare it to. 
We wouldn't know the value of calm if we didn't know the horror of distress. 
We wouldn't appreciate the refreshing air of the beach if we never breathed in pollution. 
Peace. 
Sometimes we learn to find peace in places not conducive to it. 
We find peace much more valuable when we stand on rocky edges, traveling foggy roads with windy elements that blind all signs and direction. 
Peace feels real good when you can't see how, or when, or where. 
Peace is trust. 
The best way to attain peace is to trust in the Maker of both the beach and the storm. 
Peace is to have a picture perfect beach in the mind while the storm persists around you. 
Maybe it sounds odd. 
But He did say He would give peace beyond our understanding. 
Logically, physically, maybe all your senses, all you hear, see, taste, and smell is a horrible storm. 
Peace surpasses what you know.
It will hold you. 
It will comfort you. 
When you should fear, peace says otherwise. 
When you should have sleepless nights, you are sleeping through the night. 
When you should worry about no work tomorrow, yet you don't. 
Peace doesn't make sense in the natural. In what we understand. 
Peace is like having a beach vacation right in the middle of the storm. 
Trust. Choose Peace. Choose God.