When I was little, I used to love my swing.
I would go higher and higher – imagining I would fly right off into the bit of sky I could see framed by the oak trees in my backyard.
While walking to my car recently, I looked up into the sky’s deep blueness, dotted with soft puffs of pure, white clouds.
I felt the same exhilaration I had on the swing years ago.
But this time, I was not that child, free from worry.
These days, I think we analyze too much. Self-help books, counseling, tell-it-all talk shows – often regurgitating the same stuff over and over.
Maybe we should just look up.
Look up and away from here and now.
Look up and away from what is keeping you stuck in the sludge of memories, failures, losses, and what-ifs.
Get comfortable and gaze at the sky.
It’s big, isn’t it? No, it’s enormous. The Big Dipper up there? Why, my friend lives over 1500 miles away and she can see it the same time I do.
Let the sky cover you with it’s mysteries. Let the universe hold it’s untold stories.
Feel.
Let God show you he is the creator of it all.
Here I am at another place and time. Lots of disappointments, worries, struggles, and pain have accumulated. My mind gets weary. My body feels the weight.
As a child, I was not consumed because there were adults in my life who had to take care of the big things.
Now I know God takes care of the big things.
I couldn’t leap off that swing into the sky.
But I can leap into God’s arms.
You can, too.
when it hurts 