Living This Life in the Tension of Hard and Beautiful Experiences
I like the beautiful moments in life.
I loathe the hard, disappointing ones.
Am I alone in this?
I would much prefer, especially in the hard places, to only experience the mountain-top experiences. Those breath-taking moments that we run to record in our journals.
But this isn’t real life, It isn’t realistic to think that we can only have a life full of Hallmark moments.
Now let me clarify. When I talk about those beautiful moments I am not talking about the fluff ones. These are not the cotton candy parts of life. I am talking about the birth of children. The moment you see your work flourish. When you see the hand of the Lord actively working on your behalf, these situations are ones of great substance and draw your heart, mind, soul, and spirit to the Lord.
Who doesn’t want these?
Of course, we do!
The hard places are the ones where we get kicked in the gut.
When we feel our hearts get wrenched.
They are the child walking in deception.
The times when your friend seems much more like an enemy.
These times are when getting out of bed seems to require every bit of willpower you have in you.
They are when the one who made your heart sing just sucked all the air out of the room.
When you find yourself wondering how on earth you got here or why in the world this horrible thing happened to you.
The enemy invites us to shut down parts of our hearts and minds, telling us that we will hurt less if we do. He is a liar who comes to steal, kill, and destroy.
Who here wouldn’t choose the beautiful moments instead?
But this life is not either/or it is both/and. And we can’t do it alone. This is precisely why we need a Savior. Because the hard is so hard we need our Good Father to help us in the struggle.
What we tend to do as humans is self-protect. We intentionally or unintentionally shut down parts of our hearts and minds to try and survive. But that is not who we were created to be. We are invited to live life to the fullest.
But we have to have both. If we never have hard we become proud, entitled, and self-sufficient. We do not need a Savior. We are our own Savior. (So why are so many parents trying to shelter their kids from experiencing hard things? Are we wanting arrogant, entitled kids?)
The hard places soften us. They cause us to get our eyes off ourselves and onto Him. In these spaces, we remember that life isn’t all about us. We grow in compassion for others who are struggling. It is good for us to not get our way. God knows, at times, our way would lead us straight into a pit. And it is good for us to not understand too. We aren’t going to know everything on this side of eternity and these circumstances cause us to grow trust muscles that would never grow if we understood all of life as we are living it.
But I can tell you honestly, every difficult situation I have been in has been worth it. I can see the fruit that grew from those seasons. Even though I hated them in the midst, I am better for having navigated those places with God. Our relationship is stronger and deeper from having had to depend on Him to make it through.
It is Beauty that opens us up. In the places and spaces of knowing that Creator God is actively working in our lives and on our behalf that ground we had lost in the battle on the earth gets taken back. In the face of seeing our Good Father work for our greater good, we begin to allow the goodness to thaw the hard edges of our offenses. When we know He is for us it helps us remember that truth when facing the hard.
But we must become aware that when we are in a hard place there is a voice that tempts us to avoid the beauty. Shame tries to convince us that we shouldn’t feel joy or hope amid this travesty. We CAN’T laugh at the same time our heart is breaking…that MUST be wrong.
This is living in the world but not being of this world. There is deep despair that comes from living in a fallen world. People get sick and hurt, people make bad decisions losing their way at times. We may get distracted and stumble. There will be times on this earth that our hearts will hurt so badly we don’t think we can physically take it another minute. But this is all because this world was NEVER MEANT TO SUFFICE.
We are offered much more. We are promised eternity with our Good Father.
“And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will no longer be death; and there will no longer be sorrow and anguish or crying, or pain; for the former order of things has passed away.
And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also, He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true (they are accurate, incorruptible, and trustworthy.)”
THIS IS OUR HOPE. When the world seems like it is falling apart, go here. Let your imagination wander at what is coming. When we see the deepest most beautiful moments they are fingerprints that point us toward Heaven. It is coming.
So here and now we hold the hard in one hand trusting it to God and we hold the beautiful in the other marveling at what is here and what is to come. It is a tricky tension. It is not for the faint of heart…but we can know we are not alone. We have help and His name is Jesus. He is with us and desires to help us here and know and to escort us right into that great banquet feast that is waiting for us in eternity. Meanwhile, we can also know He promises to never leave us or forsake us while we wait.
So here’s to waiting well in the tension!
