Backstory:

We all have hard days and crosses we have to bear. I know I write about this a lot but having a chronic illness is always on my mind. Some days it disrupts my life in a big way and it makes me discouraged and depressed. On those days, I just want to curl up in a ball and throw in the towel. I had a week like that this week when it seemed like every day was a test of my faith. I’m not sure that I passed the test either because I felt like emotionally and physically I was really struggling. So yesterday, I was feeling especially discouraged because of the hard week I had. I decided to cry it out to my Heavenly Father and tell Him all of my feelings. I felt much better after that.

My Cross to Bear

My Loving Father in Heaven,

I know You are always there for me without question.

But Father, today I am really struggling 

With all the stress and chaos my body is juggling.

I know that You have a perfect plan for me,

But I wish that plan I could more clearly see.

Because I am wavering in my faith,

And today my trials seem too heavy in weight.

So Father, I pour my heart out to you literally in tears,

Because I know you have been with me through the years.

When all of my tears are dried up,

Please help me to fill the faith in my cup.

I know that you sent your Beloved Son

To suffer for everyone.

I can’t imagine what He went through

From my limited point of view.

He felt all of my pains and sicknesses that I have to bear,

And that much love for me feels rare.

Help me to never forget that You and Your Son are always with me,

And this thought should always fill my heart with glee.

The Takeaway: We all have days when we feel like the weight of our trials is too heavy to carry anymore. I think it is important to pour out our hearts to our Heavenly Father in prayer. He wants to hear from us even when we feel like our faith is weak. He can help strengthen our faith when we call out to Him. He sent His Son to suffer for our trials and troubles so we never should feel alone.

Backstory:

One of my favorite podcasts is the Magnify podcast. I listened to the episode with guest Camille Fronk Olsen. She talked about how her life didn’t turn out the way she thought it would. She had so many detours in her life that she wasn’t expecting. She said, “Sometimes our bridges to nowhere in God’s hands can be magnificent.” This has really stayed with me. So I googled, “bridges to nowhere”. I found an interesting story from 1998. Hurricane Mitch devastated Honduras, destroying many bridges and roads. The Choluteca Bridge however, remained intact. The powerful floods and landslides caused by the hurricane completely altered the course of that river. The river’s new path ran beside the bridge instead of under it, rendering the structure over dry ground and it was literally a bridge to nowhere. This story means to me that a bridge to nowhere placed in God’s hands can be used for good by transforming a seemingly useless, misguided, or broken part of one’s life into a meaningful path.

Our Bridge to Somewhere

We have so many curve balls thrown at us

That we might want to make a big fuss.

Our lives don’t turn out the way we thought they would

But sometimes the path we have traveled can turn out to be really good.

Change most of the time is hard,

And if it happens too much can leave our hearts feeling permanently scarred.

But if we put our lives into the hands of our Loving Father above,

He will guide us so we can feel as free as a flying dove.

He will help us climb the mountains in our life

Even though we probably won’t be free from all strife.

He will transform in our life our bridge to nowhere

Into something that has purpose and is filled with His Loving Care.

We just need to surrender our lives over to Him,

And with Him by our side, our trials won’t seem so grim.

That takes a lot of trust on our part,

And we need to do it with all of our heart.

If we let Him, He will direct our path with purpose

And He will send us so many blessings, for He is always very generous.

We just need to trust in our Loving God,

And He will lead us gently with His guiding rod.

The Takeaway: We might feel like our lives didn’t turn out the way we thought they would when we were younger. But that doesn’t mean that we haven’t been blessed and guided by our Loving Heavenly Father. If we surrender our will to Him and completely trust in Him and in His plan for our lives, He will turn our bridges to nowhere into something meaningful and purposeful. He will gently lead us by the hand and bless us more than we can comprehend. 

Backstory:

One of my favorite podcasts is the RVVL podcast. One of the co-hosts named Stephan Taeger said this, “That’s the message of the cross is that there is no story that is not complicated, messy, full of sin and brokenness. And the message of the cross is that the Savior comes into that story and turns it into Resurrection Sunday.” I love that because for me, I can’t imagine my life without the hope that Jesus brings to it. I think that there wouldn’t be much hope for this life or the next life without Jesus.

When the Savior Steps In

Every human story is messy and complicated,

Sometimes more than could ever be anticipated.

We all experience sin, mistakes, pain and brokenness,

And those times affect our overall wellness.

No matter what we experience on this earth,

Because of Jesus we can know our divine worth.

Jesus comes into our broken story

And turns it into Resurrection Sunday.

Jesus isn’t afraid of our messy heart

And with Him we can always have a fresh new start.

He takes our grief, our failures and our sins

And transforms them into big wins.

He knows how we feel all the time

And because of that He can help us on our daily climb.

Good Friday was a day of death and sorrow,

But it was transformed by Resurrection Sunday to follow.

Jesus can turn our “Fridays” of pain and despair

Into “Sundays” of joy and renewal, and this we should all declare.

And He can always turn our darkest days 

Into days of joy and praise.

The Takeaway: We all have messy and complicated lives that are sometimes filled with grief, pain and despair. Jesus can come into our darkest stories and turn them into something more beautiful than we could ever imagine. And because of Him, there is always hope for us in this life.

Backstory:

I love the fall season with the leaves changing and the cooler weather after the summer heat. I looked up the symbolism of the fall season to Christians. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” This verse is often cited to tell us that change is a natural and purposeful part of God’s design.

Embracing Change

The vibrant colors of autumn reveal a hidden beauty in the process of change,

We may not love change and it might make us feel strange.

Just as the trees showcase their true colors in the fall,

We can be transformed by letting go of old ways to reveal a new identity in us all.

Even though the leaves fall after they are transformed,

There is always hope for spring when new life is formed.

This life cycle of nature can help us have hope

So that with our trials we can more easily cope.

The falling of leaves from a tree

Can represent us releasing our burdens and worries so that we can feel free.

Just like a tree gracefully lets go of its leaves,

We should make more room for God in our lives and to Him we should cleave.

The changing of seasons is a divine, dependable cycle established by our great Creator,

That cycle changes on God’s schedule and favor.

And if we trust our lives into God’s capable hands,

He will be there to help us and we can know that He always understands.

Even though the seasons change,

Each in their various range.

We can trust that our Father’s love for us is unchanging,

And this should provide us with a sense of comfort and peace that will be sustaining.

The Takeaway: All around us the seasons are constantly changing and everything is transforming. Our Loving Father created this earth to show us that He is in control of our lives and that He loves us very much. Even though change may be difficult for us to accept, we can trust in our Father that He will help us through whatever changes life brings. 

Backstory:

I watched an episode of the show Touched by an Angel. Andrew, the angel of death, talked about how many people have been led by the North Star for thousands of years. This intrigued me so I looked up online the similarities of following the North Star vs. following Jesus Christ. 

Jesus as our North Star

The North Star represents a constant guide,

Following Jesus Christ is a complete and active religious commitment we need not hide.

This commitment involves a personal transformation

As well as faith and adherence to His teachings to be our affirmation.

The North Star is a metaphor for a steady, objective point of reference in a chaotic world,

Jesus is viewed as the ultimate “true north” of faith as all the fiery darts of the adversary are at us constantly being hurled.

Jesus is a source of moral and spiritual guidance,

Following Him requires active faith, commitment and sacrifice so we can with Him have a firm alliance.

The North Star is a more passive celestial object used for navigation,

We can use Jesus as our guide while we navigate this life and all of its frustrations.

Just like we use maps or GPS to navigate in this life,

We can plug in our Jesus GPS to help us get through our trials and obstacles so we can more easily thrive.

Following Jesus Christ requires trust in Him and devotion to Him,

And if we choose to make Him the North Star in our lives, then our problems won’t seem so grim.

We need to be willing to sacrifice our own desires when they conflict with Jesus’ teachings,

Then He will bless us more abundantly in our daily pleadings.

The goal of following Jesus is not just finding our way geographically,

But achieving spiritual salvation so we can be with Him after this life physically.

Even if our lives seem chaotic and without purpose,

Jesus can transform our very nature when we are in His service.

The Takeaway: Just like the North Star has helped people navigate safely home for thousands of years, following Jesus Christ can help us navigate towards our celestial home after this life. If we choose to trust in Him and follow Him, He can be our North Star we can use to navigate in this chaotic world every day of our lives.

Backstory:

I listened to a good audiobook called The Wedding Shop by Rachel Hauck. One of the characters said something like, “I saw Jesus at a summer camp when I was 15.” I’m sure the character didn’t actually see Jesus face to face. But I liked this idea of finding Jesus more in our lives, when good things happen to us or when we are even in the midst of trials. I need to practice this more in my life so I can be more grateful for Jesus’ hand in my life. 

Seeing Jesus in Our Lives

When have we each individually seen Jesus’ hand in our lives?

If we could recognize His hand more then we could more easily thrive.

When we are in the midst of a hard trial,

We might be a little low on oil in our faith vial.

Jesus is always there for us

And if we could just recognize that, then it would be a big plus.

We can see Him when we feel forgiven of our trespasses

And because of Him, we can put a new lens on our glasses.

When someone shows us unexpected compassion,

Then maybe Jesus helped them be our companion.

When we feel prompted to serve or comfort someone,

Then Jesus is working through our hearts to help the one.

We can see Jesus after we have come through or are in the midst of a big storm,

He will help us navigate out of the big waves and will help us feel warm.

When we realize we were strengthened or carried through our hard time,

Then Jesus helped us with the strength to constantly get up from the grime.

Jesus is always with us especially during our suffering,

He will help us on our journey of recovering.

So, don’t ever think that Jesus will leave you alone,

He will be with you because for you individually, He did atone.

The Takeaway: We all have hard times in our lives when we might feel like no one understands how we feel. That is not true! Jesus always understands what we are going through because He has felt all of our pain and trials. We need to learn to recognize His hand in our lives helping us along our paths. He will always be there beside us, no matter what.

Backstory:

My Mom and I are currently memorizing the words of the song, My Shepherd Will Supply My Need. I have loved this song for many years because I have sung it in many choirs. I looked up the backstory behind the words of the song. It was written by Isaac Watts and published in 1719. He used Psalm 23 as the backdrop to the words. During his work on this and other hymns, Watts suffered a prolonged illness. In gratitude for the sustaining help he received, he offered this song and others. His story resonated with me because I have an autoimmune disease that I struggle with every day. As I was thinking about writing this, I looked at a painting in my living room and it caught my eye. The painting is called Beside Still Waters by Greg Olsen. The story behind this painting is also Psalm 23. The fact that I looked at the painting while I was thinking about writing this story felt like a tender mercy for me. We all are so blessed in our lives. We just need to recognize our many blessings.

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need

Jesus is our Shepherd and we are His Beloved Sheep,

We should trust Him so much that if He were here with us we could fall into a deep sleep.

Imagine being with Jesus near a beautiful and tranquil stream,

Would it be so surreal to be with Him that it would feel like a dream?

The scene is so quiet and peaceful

That you have never felt it’s equal.

You feel at once that you can trust Jesus because of the loving spirit that surrounds Him,

And you feel like your soul will never again feel grim.

You sit down with Him under a shady tree with the sun shining down around you,

And even though you have only just met Him, in His presence you can’t feel blue.

You can feel His love for you right away,

And you know that you would follow Him any and every day.

You don’t ever want to leave His presence because of how He makes you feel,

And you can tell that His love for you is real.

You fall down at His feet near the stream and bathe His feet with your tears,

You thank Him for His example and His guidance through the years.

You thank Him with all of your heart,

For suffering for your sins and weaknesses and choosing to do the hard part.

As He leads you away back to your home,

You hope the peace you felt with Him will stay with you so you never feel alone.

The Takeaway: We can always rely on Jesus to be our Good Shepherd. We can trust Him to lead us to a place of peace, joy and rest. He always knows how we are feeling at any time and in any situation. Even though He isn’t here with us physically, we can always feel His presence and His warm embrace in our lives. He will never leave us alone. We can always count on that.

Backstory:

On an RVVL podcast episode I listened to, David Butler said something that has stayed with me. He said something like: there’s something about that story in the Bible that helps me trust Jesus today. Through all the hard things He went through, Jesus proved faithful in every moment. When He doubted, He proved faithful. When it was excruciating, He proved faithful. That gives me confidence that He will prove faithful now—especially when things are hard or excruciating for me. I believe He sits with me in those emotions even today. We often talk about how Jesus experienced our pains in the past, but I actually think He experiences them again. He’s the Prince of Empathy. He sits with us, and I think He feels our pain in the very moment we feel it. And He doesn’t give up. He will prove faithful to every promise He has made.

The Prince of Empathy

Jesus as the Prince of Empathy feels everything with us,

He understands all of our emotions and that for us is a big plus.

He feels our pains so deeply as if He were inside our experience too,

And He can help us feel better when we are feeling blue.

He experienced all of our pains and emotions when He was on the earth,

And He did this out of His amazing love for us so we could know our Divine Worth.

In the Garden, He felt all of the pains we would feel in this life,

And He didn’t shy away from experiencing all of the awful strife.

Even though it was excruciating and painful for Him,

He felt it all so that our lives wouldn’t seem so grim.

He proved faithful until the end,

So that in Him we could find our truest and best friend.

He feels our pains with us every day,

And He feels it more deeply than we could ever adequately say.

When we feel like crying, we can picture Him embracing us,

We can cry on His Loving Shoulder so that we don’t feel like making a big fuss.

Even when we feel all alone

And like our trials and struggles are to everyone unknown.

We can turn to Jesus to help our hearts heal from all of the painful moments we experience,

And with Him by our side, in our darkest times, we can feel more resilience.

The Takeaway: We as Christians often talk about the suffering Jesus endured on our behalf while He was on the earth. But I don’t think we can picture Him with us in our suffering that we go through on a daily basis. Jesus, as the Prince of Empathy experiences all of our emotions, even the painful and excruciating ones with us. He will sit by us in our darkest and hardest moments. We just need to reach out to Him and His arms will be open to receive us.