Thursday, December 3, 2009

The Way: Cling

Life is forever marked by the highs and lows of life. When people look back at their lives, most of their memories are of the peaks and valleys. What is interesting enough though is most of our lives are spent along the journey between the highs and lows, the peaks and the valleys. Yet those are not the points of our lives we remember. Ask a married person about the year that they were married, and they are not gonna tell you, "Oh, that was the year that I planned our wedding." They will tell you, "That was the year I got married." Sure, it was also the year that they planned their wedding, and, sure, they will have memories of planning; but the highlight was the wedding.

So it is with every significant event in our lives, whether good or bad. There are many steps that go into a high or a low. It rarely comes out of nowhere, unless it is a death or a winning lotto ticket that you found on the sidewalk. That is how most of our lives are spent between the highs and the lows. But these are also some of the most important times, because what we do in these times can affect what happens. So often we view our lives as a rollercoaster. Just going between the highs and the lows. But what if there was something that could stabilize our lives and our emotions that so often fluctuate between joy and depression. Well, good news...there is something.

My mom shared with me once that our greatest responsibility in life is to cultivate our relationship with Jesus Christ. I have to be honest and admit that I have been going through one of those descents into the valley (no pun intended [for those who don't know, I'm from the Valley]). Being honest with you again, during this time of "descent," the first thing to be thrown to the wayside was my relationship with Christ. As I got further and further in, there was one thing that my heart ached for and I denied myself that, whether that was because of guilt, shame, hurt, etc. Would my relationship with Christ have stopped the events that led to the "descent"? Unfortunately, no, it would not have; however, as I slipped into the valley, there was one thing that I could cling to, one thing that would stabilize me, one thing that could guard my heart and mind "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding...in Christ" (Philippians 4:7).

I don't know if you can identify with this or not. Maybe, I'm just crazy. Or maybe you're going through this right now. Whether you are in the valley, on you're "descent" into the valley, on you're way to a peak, or on the mountaintop, there is only one thing that you need to do. Cling to Christ. He will help you savor the highs, enjoy the journey, and not get too down in the valleys because we always have hope in Christ. My prayer is that you will always cling to Christ and the hope that we have in him that one day, no matter if we go through hell on earth, we will no longer suffer, no longer experience pain, and no longer have a constant ride of ups and downs.

If you are going through one of these times, I pray that you be able to find some solace in the fact that you are not alone. You are not isolated. That whatever it is you are going through right now, it is shaping you into a better person. Do not allow you're time in the valley to make you bitter. Instead, allow it to shape you.

If you are going through a peak, enjoy it. Savor it. Milk it for all it's worth, because life inevitably will bring a valley. There is a danger in these times too to shirk our responsibility to cultivate our relationship with Christ because everything is going swimmingly. Never forget to cling to Christ.

Philippians 4:23: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit."

-Trace