Low Points are Holy Points Too

Here I sit, the fourth Friday that I've been in Deerfield, Illinois, and I'm satisfied. I'm happy. I like who I am (mostly)... We have to make our own destiny friends, and coming to Trinity International University is part of my formation as a person. I've started on this great adventure called college a month ago, and already it has so quickly had its ups and its downs. The thing about college is that one day it's great and the next day it sucks, and I think it's ok to say that. I think it's ok to be honest and say that a day sucks.

For some reason, Christians have this idea that to be holy, we have to love every moment of life. God gave us this life and this time and this earth, so we have to rejoice in it every second of every day... right? I 'm not so sure. I think that living is about fully embracing every moment for exactly what it is. Living fully means allowing yourself to fully engage in the different seasons of life, however short or long they are, and choose to fully accept and feel the emotions of the seasons.

The last eight or so months have been a roller coaster of highs and lows, but I've learned how to embrace the ride. God is just as present in the low points, the points of frustration and desperation, as She is in the high points.

I was a counselor at a Christian wilderness camp this summer, and every day we would lead "Lifesearch" with the tent, a time of daily devotion and learning. Our theme for the summer was Hebrews 11:1, and every day we looked at the stories of different characters who made it into the "Hebrews Hall of Fame." There was one story that I only taught once or twice the whole summer, mostly because I was still wrestling with it myself, and didn't know how to resolve it with my belief of who God is. It's the story of Abraham and Isaac, a father who came so close to sacrificing his own child that Isaac felt the harsh bonds of the rope and the cool metal of the knife. There are so many questions I have about this story, but I don't want to delve into that too much now. I've heard many different explanations/interpretations of this story, and while many seem to hold truth, I just don't feel that any of them fully reflect the perfect nature of my God. One of these such explanations is that God was teaching Abraham to hold on to things with open hands, rather than clinging to them, even if this "thing" is his son.

My thought as of late is that this lesson applies to life as a whole too. We can't cling to one season, good or bad. We can't cleave to the good times, or wallow in the miserable ones. There is a time for everything, and we have to be willing to have our hearts moved daily by the Spirit of God. Each emotion, each situation serves a purpose, and we have to be open to that, but also open to the movement from one to the next. God will guide us from day to day, and the best thing that we can do is accept each sucky and precious day for what it is, being honest and speaking truth about life, asking for help and love when we need it, and giving it to others when we can.

One of my favorite author/blogger/humans, Glennon Melton, has created this mantra, one that we could all learn from.

Peace and love to you today friends.