Feeling Hopeful
I think it’s safe to say that 2020 hasn’t been the year that any of us expected it to be. Unwittingly, I scheduled ten books to write between January and December, more than twice the number I’ve ever put out in a year’s time. But I felt confident I could do it. Then came the virus, and it threw everything out of whack! This was followed by months of adjusting to new and often crazy circumstances. Teaching the kids at home while also trying to meet my own deadlines became so stressful that by the end of the school year, we pretty much just checked out. Then came a summer with no rain whereas the area where I live normally receives afternoon monsoon showers all through the month of July and into August, sometimes even September. And I’m not even going to talk about all the other political stuff happening in the world. Suffice it to say there have been a lot of distractions and events that spawned a feeling of hopelessness.
But you know one thing I’ve learned?
There’s always hope. Hope is what gets us through the hard times. It’s what help us to cope. Knowing–or not knowing, but feeling–that there is something better around the bend is more powerful than just sitting around and waiting while experiencing a feeling of doom. Hoping is the opposite of despair, and faith is the opposite of fear. By hoping for a better tomorrow, we’re putting our faith into action. In addition, I choose to put my faith in my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the Only One who will see us through these hard times. He, of course, knows what it feels like to descend below all things. He knows how we feel. Go to Him and cast your burdens on His shoulders. He will carry them for you. And when this crazy year is over and things settle down again, we will feel an even greater love and appreciation for Him. I know I do.
Take care!
Julia