Just a Little Lesson Learned Lately

You know, sometimes when good things happen to bad people, you question the validity of God's ways (if you believe His hand is in every moment and movement in our lives). And on the contrary, when bad things happen to those who are following Him with all their heart - you wonder where the balance between good and evil actually lies.

And if you've been there personally, and when you've been there more times than necessary, you know that coping skills come with experience. Though they are varied and tend to wan in unfamiliar territory.

When you are too scared to look behind in near tangible fear of what just happened, too scared to look ahead in paralyzing anxiety of what may be coming your way, you fix your gaze downward and keep walking. With no plan, no focus, or agenda, you slip into a space that is dark and without time. Where your soul feels like it has died and the will to even get out of there is, at best, weak.

However you escape, whatever your means of survival are, a familial support system, church, friends, a therapist - or sheer will and waiting it out - you will discover you're changed.

For better or worse. But you're definitely different.

And while it seems grossly unfair, no one has ever been promised life was fair - we have to remember that despite our fears and panic, God actually has this.

Even if you don't believe this, please try to believe it. Even if its a tiny spec of hope to latch onto on days you want your world to end. Pick a scripture or a song that is your life-song for whatever you are going through. I'm not saying it'll make it easier, but it will divert your attention for a second and may be the very thing that gets you through whatever segment of time you are struggling to clamber past. Some days you are day by day, some days you are hour by hour. Some, minute by minute.

Bree and I have this running joke (based on two true stories told of people rushing to the rescue of someone else yelling "I got this, I'm a lifeguard".) So now we say alll the time "I got this, I'm a Nova Scotian" or something else completely unrelated to the subject at hand. Could be buying groceries for a bbq or grabbing a glass of water for each other. But it can be applied in a non-joke way to life's dark moments.

With 'rhyme or reason' that is often hidden to us - He's got this.

Keep the faith (even if this means calling your dad sometimes twice a day to make sure you're still alive)

The hands that hold the world are holding you.

*I hope I'm not tested in this venue of life again anytime soon - I'd just like to pass along a thought or two I've had lately*