Holding Both: Finding Peace in Life’s Transitions
Hi, friends! I know I dropped off the radar for a bit. Between recent family transitions and navigating health issues, I had to let go of some of the balls I was juggling. My capacity had hit its limit, and it felt like failure. It still feels a little weak to say that out loud. But we all have moments when life is really life-ing, and it’s hard.
It’s OK to need help. I found mine by leaning into God, finding pockets of peace with Him, and being present right where I was and with what needed to happen.
The tension I felt was learning to accept where I was while grieving where I’d hoped to be. I’ve let go of the guilt and shame that came from realizing the gap was bigger than I’d like. Thank you for your understanding! 💖
Transitions: Love Them or Hate Them, We All Have Them
At some point, I picked up the idea that I shouldn’t be sad when someone has something exciting happening. If I was happy for them, I wasn’t supposed to feel sad. Feeling both seemed wrong, almost like a betrayal.
Through the years and the millions of small moments that lead to big transitions, I’ve learned that transitions have good, exciting parts and sad, grieving parts. It takes grace to hold both and to make room for every emotion that comes. One emotion does not need to cross out the other.
The Night I Made a List of God’s Emotions
While I was processing all of this, there was one night…
I was lying in bed thinking about all the changes life had brought and the emotions that came along for the ride. That got me thinking about how God tells us not to fear or be anxious, which got me thinking about how He knew we would have all kinds of emotions. And since we’re made in His image, He must have emotions too. So I made a list of them.
It was a total “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” moment. I had to tell myself to stop following the rabbit down the hole and get some sleep! 🤭
Anyway, are you ready? Here’s some of what I came up with:
God is loving, compassionate, merciful, tender, joyful, delighted, grieving, sorrowful, angry (when we reject what Jesus did for us, because He hates sin and wants justice), jealous, zealous, patient, forgiving, restorative, faithful, kind, and a God who wants to be with us.
I’m sure you can add more. Feel free to share yours in the comments!
What We Can Do With Our Emotions
We have a Father who understands every emotion we could ever feel. I don’t think He assigns morality to emotions, calling them “good” or “bad.” In that moment, they simply are. We were made to feel things.
We can also use emotions as information. Try interviewing the anger, the fear, or whatever you’re feeling so you can move forward instead of staying stuck:
What does God’s Word say about this emotion?
Do I need to extend or ask for forgiveness?
What is the root that keeps growing this shoot of ________?
God has never not felt something. He just never sinned because of what He felt. #lifegoal
For example, our anger is not a signed permission slip to treat anyone badly or hurtfully. We are responsible for our actions and attitudes, and God does not take that lightly.
Here’s a little mic drop from Exodus 34:6-7:
“The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.’”
I don’t know about you, but I just had a Come-to-Jesus meeting! God loves us, but He doesn’t play when it comes to sin.
God’s Heart for You
I want to leave you with some major love, so get ready to screenshot! 😉
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1)
“The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.’” (Jeremiah 31:3)
“In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft. The LORD alone led him; no foreign god was with him.” (Deuteronomy 32:10-12)
You Are Not Alone
Transitions come into our lives like a bulldozer, leveling the ground we were standing on and turning over our plans and dreams. Life looks different than we expected. Change always brings emotions. Don’t be afraid to feel them. Just don’t let them control you, and don’t react in ways that lead to sin.
That’s when it’s so comforting to know we have a Father who understands us, loves us, and walks through these times with us. We can be honest about where we really are and find peace in that very place.
We are not alone.
My prayer is that whenever you face a transition of any kind, you’ll remember how deeply you are loved and that God is always there for you!
What emotion would you add to the list of God’s emotions? Share it in the comments below. 💬
I hope you have the best day!
All My Love,
~ Jodi xo
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