“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 – This verse is lovely on a coffee mug, but how lovely is it when you need to apply it in real life? Over the next six days I pray you experience a flicker of light: hope in the darkness.
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Day 1
Scriptures: Zephaniah 3:17, Psalms 139:15, Psalms 28:6-7
What comes to mind when you think of the word despair? When someone or something you counted on did not work out as planned? When battling something no one else seems to understand?
My “pits of despair” was in the form of battling major depression. I could not see the work that was being done in the secret place and what was possible on the other side of healing. Fast forward to several years later, and I can see the positive from the pits. Driven and determined became the trajectory of my life–forever changed because of that pivotal season at rock bottom.
It was not a miraculous healing but took lots of prayer, grit, and professional counselling to climb out. Side note: It’s not to say it has been complete sunshine and roses ever since. It has been a lifelong journey, but I know the One who is for me.
He is for redemption.
He is for healing.
He is for grace.
He is for compassion.
What life throws at us does not always make sense. Then sprinkle in some “why me?” and top it off with “if only…”
It can appear that there is no light at the end of the tunnel, but there is! God is with you, and He is for you.
I pray that in the pits of your own despair–some tiny, microscopic light will flicker to give you an ounce of hope. It only takes an ounce of hope to see what is possible. In fact, the Bible gives us an example of something powerful that is quite small. Faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains.
Keep crying out to Him.
Yell if you must.
Open His living Word for the promises that He is there amidst the pain.
Day 2
Scriptures: Philippians 4:19, Romans 8:31, Psalms 118:16
Where do we start now?
You can be at rock bottom and inevitably there are individuals who may want to kick you while you are down. Keep looking up. Keep turning to the One who uses evil for good.
There are scores of people on this earth with unprocessed or hidden trauma, and it can translate to “hurting people, hurt people.”
On top of the pain and despair you may be experiencing, there may be no one else in your life to turn to. You may feel isolated, but there is a God who loves you immensely.
If no one has told you this before, let me be the first: You are loved. You are valued. You are seen.
Turn your gaze upward rather than outward, and your view will come into focus to a God who will meet you where you are.
Part of my healing journey was setting boundaries and not allowing others to steal my joy. I have learned that I am not responsible for “joy stealers,” but I am responsible for who I let in and how I choose to respond to them.
Day 3
Scriptures: Proverbs 27:17, Hebrews 10:24-25, James 5:16
Community. Community. Community.
The last thing the enemy wants is for you to live in community—for you to not feel isolated and alone. The enemy wins when you are struggling in isolation, when you think you are fighting a battle in an army of one. A quote that comes to mind is to “be kind to everyone because everyone is fighting a battle you know nothing about.”
There is freedom in sharing your struggles and finding others in the same boat. One way to find that boat is to find a church. There is no commandment that says, “thou shall go to church,” but that is a great place to find and live in community. And if you don’t have a church home, I would challenge you to pray and seek one.
Think of church as the ideal family. No family is perfect, but are the things that matter in their DNA; for example, sound teaching directly from the word of God, humility, grace, compassion.
Get involved in a small group or create your own. That is where relationships are strengthened. Pray that you can find the ones who will encourage, challenge, and lift you up.
When I was in a season of despair a friend reached out to me to me to join a weekly prayer group. It was not something I considered, and it was much easier to stay in isolation. I knew deep down I needed to step out in faith. The first meeting it physically hurt to pray, but as I continued, I finished praying relieved and hopeful. It led to more community and more fellowship.
We are not made to walk alone.
Day 4
Scriptures: Matthew 7:3-5, Galatians 6:2, 1 Thessalonians 5:11
There is a stigma as Christians that we must be perfect and if we are not, we must ensure the ones around us ARE by letting them know.
Let’s be real. It is time to take off the facade and burn down the “I got it all together” walls in church. We all have struggles and sometimes that includes seasons of despair. If anyone said it would be smooth sailing after becoming a Christian, that was untruthful.
Let us collectively take the log out of our own eye before we magnify the splinter in someone else’s life. Let us be the church that we were called to be—compassionate and loving to one another—to be cognizant of other people’s struggles and to reach out.
If you are in a season of despair, I encourage you to let other Christians know. From personal experience, it is surprising how many people can relate when you open up about your struggles and battles.
My personal conviction is remembering how God has poured his mercy and grace upon me when I have fallen or felt hopeless. If I could extend only a portion of the mercy and grace God has shown me to others, the world would be a very different place.
Day 5
Scriptures: Nehemiah 8:10, Psalms 46:1, Psalms 119:28, Proverbs 18:10, Isaiah 40:29-31
We can marvel in the beauty of what can be done when we “let go and let God:” When we stop trying to do things in our own strength, when we cry out and let God know we cannot do this alone. The burden of despair is not for us to carry.
I remember a conversation I was having with an acquaintance about my current life situation—as in being a beach girl at heart living in a place with plentiful sunshine and blue skies and trading it in to live in a place that has over 130 days of rainfall on average. Talk about feelings of despair. The person said quite flippantly, “I could never do that!” And this person is correct.
There is quite a bit we are unable to do in our OWN strength, but the utter amazement, when we allow God to lead and not to be blinded by our present circumstances. It is in the uncomfortable. It is in the hopelessness and despair that God can move when we call out to him. It is in the stepping out of our comfort zone where the growth happens, where purpose can be realized, where contentment can be found regardless of our current situation or lot in life.
Our “I could never do that” or “this is hopeless” could turn into “what adventure do you have for me, now?”
Day 6
Scriptures: Jeremiah 29:11-13, Psalms 34:18, Romans 8:37-39
In a song written by Blessing Offer, his voice cries out “there will be brighter days!” Please pin that message somewhere on your heart: There WILL be brighter days. Hold on. There is someone reading this who may even think the world would be better off without you. No, it is not.
You were uniquely designed. “God knew the number of hairs on your head before you were born. He knit you together in your mother’s womb. You are fearfully and wonderfully made.”
Do not take my word for it, check out Psalms 139 which speaks this out, especially verse 10. Even there your hand will guide me; your right hand will hold me fast. Even there no matter where “the there” is located, God is with you. He is for you.
Please do not mistake this with some fluffy platitudes that are intended to instantly make you feel warm and fuzzy on the inside. It can still feel painful and dark and hopeless,
BUT
you are not alone. There is hope. There is always hope. If you are rolling your eyes right now, please know that I am a living example of hope, of healing, of restoration, of renewal. There were occasions on this journey I did not even want to be on this earth. I thought that would be an easy way out. It is not.
To add context, as mentioned previously it was not a “poof, I am magically healed.” My healing required professional counselling. It is okay to ask for help, and I will be the first to help erase the stigma. I believe it is more admirable to ask for help than to pretend like everything is okay.
As time has passed, and I mean by decades, I am living a beautiful dream. This dream would have been dashed if I exited the stage door and left too soon, if I thought the world was better off without me.
Get back ON that stage!
If you are currently buried under blanket and pillows hiding in bed, that’s okay. We will start with a pajama-dance party