The Antidote

I was reading another book yesterday. The author, like most of us, wants to figure out a way to live life in such a way that circumstances don't determine her attitude, hope or trust in God. She writes:

That is how I wanted to be, I realized [watching a little boy twirling and dancing in circles, unencumbered and unselfconscious]. I wanted to be as a child, delighting in life, at peace with God, living in the grace of the moment. I wanted to live above the pull of depression and cultivate a heart of joy from which others could draw. I wanted to learn what it really meant to be filled with the reality of God, the love of God, and the joy of God every day, no matter what else is going on in my life (Dancing With My Father, Sally Clarkson).

What is the antidote for depression, anxiety, worry, sadness, stress and the cherry on top, that pesky all-encompassing feeling called OVERWHELMED?

Well, Jesus.

But also, gratitude.

Gratitude is the thing that loosens the muscles in our necks that get so stiff from looking down at all that is wrong and frees us to look up, to the One who is our help.

My heart is heavy, but I will look up. I will let gratitude change the direction of my eyes.

Here's some things I'm grateful for:

My best friend, who lives far away and who I haven't seen in almost three years, is coming to visit tomorrow. We're going to go to bookstores and coffee shops and I'm going to cook thai food for her. So excited.

My sister found out yesterday that she is having boy #2. This makes the count: Nephews - 4, Nieces - 2. Blessings.

I have the best church a girl could ask for. And they let me play the drums there.

What are you grateful for?

My Land Between

I'm reading a fantastic book right now. It's called The Land Between by Jeff Manion. The land between is a wilderness, a desert, a transition. A place potentially full of discouragement, anxiety, fear. An unknown. It's also a place where the ground is perfect for growing new things. Where truth finally has a chance to reach down to the roots and grow trust and hope, maybe for the first time.

In the land between, everything is stripped away. We get down to the bare bones of who we are, what we're about, where we're heading. The children of Israel made their choice in their land between. They chose to believe God had ripped them off. They walled themselves off in their wilderness. He couldn't change their minds. He tried.

How can I make a different choice in my land between? My answer is in Deut. 1:28-33. He carried them in His arms like a father carries his son all the way they went. But still, they didn't trust Him.

In my desert, in my wilderness, in my land between, I will be like Israel in His arms.

My roots will grow in Him.

And I will trust my Father.