I don’t ever remember a summer that’s been as dry and hot as this one. Our neighborhood is filled with yard after yard lacking color, drained of life.
My life has felt the same way over the past few weeks. Dry. Cracked. Lacking color. Drained of life.
I’d been pushing through, reprimanding myself for weeks for feeling so empty. I have so many things to be thankful for, so why am I so downcast? Then, I finally let myself pause, and I realized it’s been one thing after another for awhile. Frustrations and disappointments that individually would be bearable, have compounded and worn me out. Additionally, a number of people I love have scary, major life issues going on right now.
My heart has felt as though it might crack open.
Then yesterday, a friend showed up for a playdate with an iced chai charger in hand. When I opened the door to her smiling face she said, “I stopped by your favorite coffee shop. I asked the guy behind the counter if he knew you and he said, ‘Of course!’ Then I asked if he knew what your favorite drink was, and he did!”
She also handed me a note that said, “It IS time for a coffee break. I know that God can take a blah summer and turn it into one for His glory.”
A few of the cracks sealed. Love. Hope. Truth. My friend poured those over my dry heart. I had been struggling to hold onto them on my own. She didn’t tell me to just snap out of it, get over it, or stop whining.
Instead, she reminded me that in the midst of a dry, colorless season, [tweetherder]my hope is not in the circumstances of here & now, but in the God Who walks with me in the here & now.[/tweetherder]
I’m reminded of God’s words to Israel through the prophet Isaiah:
This is what the Lord says—
he who made you, who formed you in the womb,
and who will help you:
Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant,
Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
For I will pour water on the thirsty land,
and streams on the dry ground;
I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring,
and my blessing on your descendants.
They will spring up like grass in a meadow,
like poplar trees by flowing streams.Isaiah 44:2-4
This is the God we serve. The one Who made us and will help us. The one who will revive us through His Spirit. The One Who will prompt others to be His hands and feet and pour refreshment into our lives.
Are you doing life with anyone who refreshes you when you’re weary? How have others poured life back into you?
Just like running together, there are times when you push me when I am not feeling it and other times I am the one encouraging you to keep going. Same thing is true about life, you were there for me many times when I was going through difficulties, now let me be there for you! If you need to talk or vent or whatever….call me! You are loved and deserved to be encouraged!!!!
<3 ya lots,
Jen
Thanks Jen! <3
Amelia, I have a handful of friends who I almost run to when I am so dry. Unfortunately, they don’t life in my immediate area, but are always a phone call away. They are women that speak truth to me, encourage and affirm all in one. May God pour over you richly in these coming days!
I have a handful of friends at a distance who do the same, Brenda. What a blessing to have other women to speak truth into our lives! Thanks for the encouragement!
I seem to remember a friend who brought me a coffee and big old pot of chicken soup in January when I went through a bitterly cold month. 🙂
I believe that, when we do these kind of things for others, it’s really the Holy Spirit saying, “Hey, don’t you think this would make him/her smile?”. It’s being the Body of Christ. His hands. His feet. His heart.
Love you.
Oh yeah, I remember that now too! 🙂 I agree, these are Holy Spirit promptings. We need to slow down and listen and then act!
Oh, to have such a friend… sigh.
JJ, big ((hugs)) from here. I wish they could be in-real-life hugs!!