Anxiety hits hard. Depression deals a blow. Life goes limp. We were never meant to be Energizer bunnies. Never meant to run a sprint in a marathon. Life gets hard when we don't recharge.
For me, it is the early morning time or in the early evening before all three guys arrive home. Time alone. Time to think. I have come to realize that feeding the soul is vital to living. Here are some ideas on how to recharge when life is crazy or painful.
{Reading God's Word} The Bible in 90 Days. Women's Bible studies. Focusing on one book like Matthew in May. Whatever the method I know that I daily need to be in His Word. It reset my thinking and centers me. It truly is food for the soul.
{Praying} Sometimes when the anxiety strikes it is just better to take it to God. Throw it in His lap. It is definitely big enough! Prayer also has a refocusing effect. God gets bigger. Our giants, smaller.
{Creating Space} Time to think. Time to enjoy the little things in life. Running around and "doing" can leave us empty on the inside. We live in a culture that glorifies the busy. The only problem is busyness can bust a soul.
{Finding Humor} Laughter can soothe a soul. I have found that humor is more precious and needed in times of sorrow. It is a lifesaver you can hang onto when you are drowning in despair. Of course, humor tends to be more difficult to come by in hard times, but even a little can lighten us so that we can keep moving.
{Riding the Bus} A friend this past year shared this analogy. We are all on a bus. Sometimes we don't like the scenery. Sometimes we would never choose the route. Sometimes we wish desperately to get off. But the key is to remain on the bus. We don't drive our own bus. We must trust the Driver and where He is taking us. We must keep going forward even when we don't know where "forward" will take us. Our souls are fed when we trust Him.
So how do you feed your soul?
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8 comments:
Good list. I would add exercise. For the last several months I have gotten up early to read my One Year Chronological Bible and several times a week follow that with 30 minutes on the elliptical. I like to listen to K Love while on the elliptical or running--seems like I sort out a lot of things during this time.
Yes! I would have to agree that exercise helps tremendously!
Beautiful ways to feed our souls, so vital to our living. Thank you, Debbie.
Stopping by from the Whitespace link-up today. . . I surely have plenty to throw in God's lap right now. Thanks for that reminder and the apt bus analogy. May the Lord surprise you with laughter and just the right word from His Word for your need. Grace and peace to you in Jesus today.
I like the bus analogy. I have always preferred trains because you can trust the route - you know where the stops are - they call out the station names. A bus journey is much more like life though - you look out the window and wonder where you are, and you might have to take a detour and you are definitely having to trust the driver.
Our souls are fed when we trust Him........yes, trust trust trust.
Thank you all for stopping by! You are such an encouragement to me!
A great analogy of "riding the bus" - thanks for sharing. Trusting the Driver, and where He is taking us ...
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