Today, I’ve got a follow up to yesterday’s post about how dispelling lies has helped me reclaim my life and walk out of a long-term struggle against depression and anxiety. In addition to identifying lies and taking the time to properly address them, I’ve also learned that sometimes it takes a hard season to find them at all.
Before we get to that, I want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who comes to do life together. Who reads and shares and takes a moment to tell me when something hits home for you. I am humbled, and affirmed by the reaction I got to yesterday’s post about lies. Sometimes I get nervous about posting something vulnerable–something that can make me look like a goon. Admitting to anyone on the Internet who cares to click a link that I’ve struggled with lies was intimidating for me.
So, thanks for being cool. Now back to the topic at hand.
Drafts and Lies
Let’s go back to the analogy I drew yesterday, between cold drafts coming into my house and lies coming into my life. (If you missed it, you can read it here.)
I gave a nice list of how lies are sneaky like cold air drafts that were finding lots of ways into my home. The affects of the cold air stretched much farther than my heating bill. The furnace worked overtime, to no avail–the rooms were still cold. I couldn’t sleep at night, which left me tired and cranky during the day, which in turn took its toll on my patience with Gideon.
Lies are the same. Their affects reach far beyond just the singular truth they’ve obscured. Lies can become devastating.
The Cold Snap
I was so glad when the draft problem was noticeably better. I was happy to have found the sources of cold air coming in, and happy to have a solution.
Even more than that, I was happy it happened when it did. I was grateful for the early October cold snap that made my problem clear. It was a perfect trial-run of how Acorn House will truly perform through the winter. The draft problem was revealed during a short stretch of 20˚ days. If it had happened when the windchill was -40˚, that would have been much, much worse.
Before I go any farther, please know that I’m not here to explain why bad things happen. I’m not opening a discussion on why bad things happen to “good” people. I’m not even going to say that “everything happens for a reason.”
The truth is, bad things happen. Hard circumstances face fun, loving, kind, good-hearted people all the time. Many of the hardest circumstances I’ve faced have come into my life unannounced, with little warning, and at no fault of my own. I had no control over their timing or the scope of pain they’d leave in their wake.
I can’t tell you why these things happen and I won’t offer you a solution. But I can assure you that God–the God of the Bible–is working to set all things right (see Ps 103:10-18). I can assure you that God is kind. He is almighty and able to redeem any circumstance. He is able to create beauty and life from dirt and death. Remember, He made man out of dirt in the garden. Also, Jesus’ gruesome death on the cross opened a sweet, full-access path to God, gives us eternal life and the Holy Spirit.
Those in Christ can always trust that God can and will create something worthwhile out of any ugliness we hand over to Him.
My Lie Problem
Which brings me back to lies.
When I realized I had a “lie problem” in my life I was in the midst of a mental crisis. I can’t pinpoint the exact cause. A surgery that didn’t go as planned; Chronic pain; Spiritual warfare; A major life change. These and other unwelcome circumstances added up to a depression and anxiety storm like I’ve never seen before in my life.
In counseling I realized that lies were major contributors to the poor state of my mental health. As I untangled the lies from the truth I found healing that I didn’t know was possible. I left the cycle of anxiety and low-self-worth that had plagued me for years.
Now, looking back I can see that I may never have gotten to the root of my problems, had it not been for the terrible circumstances in that season. When I turned that awful season over to God, He propelled me into a new phase of life. And it’s far better than the “good life” I had before.
Drafts Aren’t A Problem In Summer
Just like it takes a cold snap to find drafts, it may take a hard season to find lies that have been sneaking into your mind. You know when the drafts in my house didn’t bother me at all? Summer. When the days were 70˚ and sunny I didn’t notice extra air coming in at all. You know when the lies didn’t bother me so much? When everything was stable and good.
When things got rocky it was obvious there was a problem. Metaphorically, my foundation was fine, but my structure had air leaks that were causing my home to be miserable. My Salvation was secure, but the lies had come in and I was not living the abundant, joy-filled life Jesus wanted to give me.
We cannot control the circumstances that come into our sphere. But we can control our thoughts. We can be intentional about turning our eyes to the Redeemer of all things, allowing Him to create something positive out of a mess. We can be intentional about what we allow to manifest in our mind and hearts.
Hard times are…hard. But our God never leaves us alone, and He truly is working for the good of those who love Him.
