Tripping Over Typeset

I wake to an email that breaks my heart.

She tells me her story not because she wants me to solve it but because she needs someone to hear. She needs assurance she’s not alone in this.

And friend, you are not alone. The God who knows the beginning from the end knows about this day.

It’s one of those difficult concepts we wrestle with… others make choices and even though it’s their choice, we pay and the cost is high. Life is altered. What we had dreamt for our lives now turns into a nightmare and we lose because another chooses to leave.

Life is hard… sometimes ugly… and many times unfair.

Friend, I don’t have the answers and I wish I could wave a magic wand and make everything okay… but I can’t and you can’t. And instead we are left in the wake of another’s choices and we wonder if the waves will subside enough for us to catch our breath before it breaks again.

That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” ~ Mark 4:35-39 (NIV)

Oh friend, in this storm He cares. He has not abandoned you. He has not left you to drown. He is with you in this boat and He cares.

I can’t answer for another’s actions. I can’t change their mind. Yet I can remind you of this Truth: The One who formed and fashioned you has made you beautiful. Your worth is not found in what another says. Your worth is not determined by the actions of another.

The God who created you made you beautiful. You are beautiful, friend.

He has you in this whirlwind of a storm. This is no small squall and the waves are high. Yet the God we serve still speaks peace in the storm.

Though we can’t control the actions of another, we can control our focus. And in this storm, we choose to keep our focus on Him.  We choose to keep our focus on the One who is with us in the boat.

He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

My friend, I can’t stop this storm. I can’t even calm the waves but the One who is with me is also with you. He is in this boat with you. You are not alone and you are not unloved.

If I was near you my friend, my arms would be tight around you. We would sit with a cup of tea and cry this one out. But I am far and my arms can’t reach yet I pray the One who is always near will wrap the arms of His Spirit around you, fill you with peace and calm you in this storm.

The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in Him; though you may stumble, you will not fall for the Lord upholds you with His hand. ~ Psalm 37:23-24 (NIV)

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