Trusting God

It's really not good to be left alone with my thoughts all day. I have had more time alone in my thoughts during this pandemic than ever before, or so it feels. I have come to realize (again--this is a recurring lesson) that my thoughts and feelings are not God. Alone in my thoughts, I start thinking the worst about others, about myself, about God. I start wondering if God is even listening. I wonder if I have been doing what I am supposed to be doing. I start over-analyzing. It's a vicious cycle. I like knowing what's coming and why things happen as they do. I have been alive long enough and a Christian long enough to know we don't often know why things happen the way they do. We know ultimately that God works all things for our good and His glory, but it's hard to see that sometimes in the moment. It is hard to simply trust in God's loving care. 

There are a lot of voices fighting for our attention. Information overload is a common occurrence. It's not just stuff happening locally anymore--we feel the burden from the entire world as we see things unfold. Shutting it off might suffice for a bit, but it creeps back in again. If it's not social media, it's the grocer at the store or your neighbor down the street talking about whatever plagues our world. It can be quite depressing to hear and it is definitely a burden too great for us to bear.

Friend, there is Someone for Whom the grief and burdens of this world are not too great to bear. His name is Jesus Christ. 2,000 plus years ago, God came down. He did not come to resolve economic or social woes. He came to save us from our greatest enemy: our own selves. We are born under the curse of sin. Before we are even self aware, we are sinners. The brokenness in this world is a result of our sin. This is why Christ came, to reconcile us and rescue us.

If you feel weighed down by grief and burdens too great to carry, turn to Him. Trust that He is who He says He is. Do not trust your feelings. Trust Him. Your feelings are fickle. He is not. Inform your thoughts. If you are not actively meditating on His Word or reading His Word, then your thoughts will dictate your actions and feelings. Allow the Bible to dictate your thoughts and feelings. We are finite beings with limited capacity for knowledge. There are many, many things too great to understand. He knows all. He directs all. 

Rejoice in the Savior. Rejoice that we have a mighty and good God. The Sovereign of the universe sits on His throne. Look to Him. Trust Him. 

Revelation 21:1-5a "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be any mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.' And he who was seated on the throne said, 'Behold, I am making all things new.'"