Surrender: Like giving up but braver

It has been one of those days. One of those I want to run away to my own tropical island, take a nap, eat chick-fil-a, and never come back days.

Do you ever have those? One of those days where it feels like it would be easier to just quit it all than keep trudging forward.

This afternoon I had a friend call me sobbing. Just at her whits end.. marriage. kids. health. work. All of it crashing down on her at once. I listened and sympathized with her, it’s a weighty world we live in.

After pouring out some words of wisdom and understanding, I joked back with her saying ‘well it is good, you’re normal too.’

As tears turned to laughs and our phone call ended I sat back and thought for a second about the constant strides we are all making to obtain what we perceive as ‘the norm’.

Normal. What even is normal anymore? What is really even truly real anymore?

All this stuff the world feeds us seems to be more engineered by a degree of manmade perfection; an enhanced life touched up and retouched rather than the raw truth… aside from God, perfection is a fake.

This chase we are in, this unending relay of milestones we think we need to hit: happy husband. Kids who adore us. Success in the workplace. Pinterest worthy home. Countless Friends. Size 6 jeans…. on and on it goes until we are tired and frankly we want to give up.

The more we realize we aren’t able to control the outcomes, the higher our frustration grows. Its like a boxer punching the air, we are fighting a battle we can’t win and exhausting ourselves working at it.

The amazing thing is though the world says never quit, God designed us to. When we stop the striving we see the thriving…. We see God moving and taking and using that struggle to strip off a part of and replace it with reliance on him.

You see that piece wouldn’t cut it in the presence of true perfection and in light of eternity, its gotta go.

Piece by piece He is molding us into His masterpiece.

Girl if you feel like throwing in that towel today, do it.

If you feel like throwing your hands up, do it.

It means your molding is beginning and He is so excited,God has got this and He always has.

² Dear brothers and sisters,^[a] when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. ³ For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ⁴ So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. – James 1:2-4

Your imperfection is exactly what someone else needs to see today because that is exactly where meetings with Jesus begin.

Lord of life, thank you for all that is good and true. Thank you for your workmanship and the complexities of our heart. Thank you for rest and ceasing. Father meet my sweet sister in this season, turn her tears to joy and let her see your hand in her imperfection. Let us see who we can be when we look to who you made us to be. In Jesus’ name, Amen.