Biblical Posts

The pressures of life.

I'm writing this post for you guys and for myself as well. It's like I was on a high all through the month and this week was like a decent. I literally forgot everything I'd learnt because one thing tanked my whole week. But then it's funny how one sermon was enough to fix it.
The pressures of life exist in so many forms. Health problems, school stress, family issues, exams, spiritual issues and so much more. They can twist us and bend us in so many ways and they affect us in so many ways as well.
Everyone chooses to cope differently as well. I usually vent a lot, and I pray about my problems as well. Sometimes, people withdraw and spend some time alone with God. Both approaches are okay.
But there are a lot of things I did this week that really only make the pressure worse. So, I'm sharing my mistakes with you so you can correct them or avoid making them.
1. Don't push everyone away. I'm not just talking about humans here, I'm talking about God as well. People will mess up, and they will mess up badly. Sometimes, we're the ones who make mistakes or something unexpected just happens and it's out of our control.
Whatever the situation is please don't push your loved ones away. A really close friend of mine that I usually confide in upset me and I just didn't want to talk to him anymore. I was upset with God because of a test, and I was disappointed in myself, so I pushed God away too. I even pushed myself away in a sense. I remember telling someone this week "I don't want to be alone with my thoughts."
God wouldn't be God if you couldn't talk to him when you were angry at him. Your friends aren't your friends if you can't confront them when they do something that upsets you.
Obviously, God is never in the wrong. But there are times that he does things that we don't understand. And when we don't understand why our plans didn't work out, it's normal to get upset. So, you need to talk to him, ask him questions. Not in a disrespectful manner but as you would talk to someone you trust. And he'll understand and give you answers.
2. LISTEN: Sometimes when we're at low points we stop listening. In fact, sometimes the problem is that you just keep talking. You sit for an hour and rant to God but then go about your day without actually making an effort to listen to him or to notice the signs.
It gets kinda hard to listen sometimes. We try to but then we end up taking everything way too seriously or not seriously enough. Or if you're like me, you overthink everything and get frustrated.
The bible says in a verse I like to remember;
"My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me."John 10:27
Don't panic about hearing from God. If you're about to make an important decision pray about it. If you commit everything into God's hands, he won't let you make the wrong decision. He'll reroute you if you get lost and turn your mistake into a testimony of your growth.
3. Avoid Comparative suffering: This capital NO. Comparing your pain with someone else's is the worst thing you can do. Everybody's path is unique. We all have different experiences and challenges that have been put in place to build us up into who God has called us to be.
You comparing your suffering to someone else's and thinking that your problems are nothing to worry about doesn't help you get better. Invalidating your own pain by thinking about how big someone else's is will not make your pain go away. It'll only hurt more because you'll begin to feel like a terrible person just for being human.
You don't get to beat yourself up because you're upset about something. Should we be grateful? Absolutely. Could it be worse? Always. But that doesn't mean you dont get to feel hurt or sad when things don't go your way. It's feelings like anger and sadness that sometimes draw us closer to God. Because we realize in those moments because he's the only one who truly understands us and the only one who can give us the peace we're seeking.
I pray that God continues to help and support us as we go through each day. That he continues to comfort and heal us in all the areas that bother us (including the ones we don't talk about) and I pray he turns our trials and tribulations into testimonies.
Stay blessed sisters :)

~ Anne :)