Hi Mommas ! I'm feeling inspired and have a few free minutes (if only this happened more often).
I was listening to a song this morning by Rend Collective called, "Hallelujah Anyway" and really resonated with the lyrics. They say "I think I'd rather strike a match than curse the dark". I found myself asking, "where is it that I'm trying to curse the dark as opposed to striking a match?"
Doesn't it feel like the choice is made for us sometimes? We find ourselves amongst some rotten circumstances and we're not happy about it. It feels unfair. Ugly. Consuming. Like, "I don't think I did anything to deserve this. These aren't even my actions that landed me here." Maybe they were the actions of someone close to you that hurt you. Maybe it's the result of some unfortunate circumstances that you find yourself in and you can't even figure out how it is that you ended up here. Can I be blunt? It sucks. It's less than fun. And sometimes I just want to sit and feel bad for myself. And I actually think that's ok. I think we can. I think we're invited to.
When I think of Jesus as he approached the cross.. and I'm going to pretend as if there was a 2024 translation of the book of Luke, it may read something like, "Jesus asked God if he really had to go through with His plan, because, 'Let's be honest, God, your plan kinda sucks.'" I wouldn't blame Him. I feel like a little bargaining, in that situation, makes a lot of sense. However, in hindsight, we know that His plan actually didn't suck. That this rotten, terrible, unfair plan was God's in the first place. And it had a whole lot of purpose. What a blessing it is to have the gift of hindsight. The gift that first century Christians may have missed. What if, we trusted God with the same for our lives? What if we said, "God, I don't like this. This sucks. Yet.. Your will be done." I can trust that. I can trust that the hindsight is coming. I can trust that, someday, maybe not even on this side of heaven, that I can say, "I get it now. Hindsight is 20/20." And yet, I can still feel like I've been wronged. I can feel like this burden is too big to carry, or even feel as if it's not even mine to have to carry. We can feel as though our circumstances are unfair. To feel like others have it better than we do. To feel wronged and betrayed. And then.. I think we have a choice. We can sit there, and curse the dark, or we can strike a match.
Do you find yourself cursing the dark? Feeling stuck in that place of "Why me? Why again?! How could they do this to me? Has God forsaken me? Has He forgot about me? Does He even care?" What would it look like if, instead, we struck a match? If we chose (yes a lot of times it is a choice), to try to find the beauty. What would that look like?
In my life, it's looked like a whole lot of prayer. A whole lot of, "Ok, God, show me. Ok, God, use me. Ok, God, help me. Again. And yet again. Oh, and again, please." I fervently trust that God didn't put me on Earth to continuously let me down. I don't believe He allows me to hurt and then abandons me in my hurt. Mommas, I've witnessed it. I've been let down. I've been hurt. And then I plead with God for it to not be for nothing. Let's strike a match.
In my life, I've had the privilege to walk alongside others who have witnessed a similar hurt that I have. "Hey, that happened to you. Gosh, I'm so sorry. That hurts. I know, because it happened to me too." It has been such a blessing to be able to love people while they walk in their hurt, but then to also encourage them with the hope that's coming. Let's not leave people in their hurt. Let's walk with them, love them, and encourage them that something better is coming. Let's strike a match.
In my life, I've found these hurts to also be extremely humbling. We truly don't know what people are walking through. We don't know what's lead others to where they've landed. Can we be people that, instead of being judgmental, we're encouraging? Instead of feeling offended, we can feel empathy? Let's strike a match.
Mommas, I pray that whatever hurt you're walking through, that it's not all-consuming. I pray that you find the very tangible hope that may be hard to see, but to at least know that it's there. I pray that, not only is your hindsight 20/20, but that it's the most peaceful view you've ever encountered.
Until Next Time..
Your,
(Match-stricken (I'm stretching, here. Bear with me.))
Christian Momma