Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. James 4:14

Sometimes life is hard. Sometimes it’s downright painful. Sometimes the uncertainty of it all can drive you crazy. It’s like being on a lifeboat in the midst of a storm, and you’re trying to navigate the troubled waters. It’s tricky, with the waves crashing in on all sides, the constant barrage of rain, and sea slamming against your tiny vessel, to just try to stay afloat and survive until it all passes. I imagine, I’d probably wonder if giving up would just be easier than fighting the storm. But, ultimately I hope I’d just hang on as long as I could, and that it would be long enough.

I’ve spoken to many people who feel or have felt the same as I have. The storms have beaten and battered them until they’re waving the white flag of surrender. Other times they’ve held on until the sun came out and they felt safe again. Lately it seems the white flags are flying higher than the sun, and the storms are just beating them (me) to a pulp. Their energy and the desire to keep going are almost gone. They feel like the “mist” in James 4 that’s “here for a little while and then vanishes”. At least they wish they could just vanish, and everything would just be ok.

So what do you say to give hope to those who appear to have none? Keep going? You’ve got this? It’ll be alright? Things will get better? I truly wish I knew of one good answer. We’re all so different, and each one’s storm is different. So I guess for me, what would I want someone to tell me, and the advice I’d probably give today is: just let go. Some things are just beyond our control and outside our level of expertise. Maybe you just have to do the best you can and hang on for the sun to come back out. Perhaps the sunshine for you is simply talking to someone that you trust and just asking for a little help. For some it’s looking up and believing that God, in his infinite love and wisdom, heard your cry long before the first tear fell or the first word crossed your lips.

Even though life feels like it lasts forever and that we’re here a very long time, it’s actually quite short. Especially compared with some of the figures in the Bible who lived hundreds of years.

I guess I’d be less than honest if I said life was going exactly as I’ve planned. We’re in the middle of what used to be my most favorite time of the year, but I’ve struggled lately, and I feel as though I’m just barely hanging on. I want to be the person who helps others keep going and be happy. I want everything to work out like it’s supposed to, but right now, it’s tough. Struggles with my health have me feeling as though I’ve been set adrift in a vast ocean with no land in site. My ability to function as a normal individual has been hampered. So, for me, right now my answer to you and especially to me is to just let go. I’m not sure if I know any other way. So that’s what I’m gonna do, and I’m believing that when the storm passes that the sun will shine again.

Published by Jeff

View all posts by Jeff