I took up my pen to write but as much as my fingers itched to put thoughts onto paper, my mind was one dark, vast void. I threw the tablet on my bed and grabbed up my computer. Sometimes I can write better when I type. I’ll try that.
But typing didn’t jog my brain into finding the right words either.
I tried free writing. Surely that will get my creative juices flowing.
No joy! All I could seem to get onto my paper were words saying I had no words.
My efforts were futile. The thoughts were jammed behind the logs of stress and exhaustion. And the pressure was mounting.
Pitching the notebook aside, I flopped back onto my pillow and stared at the ceiling. I felt the tightness of my neck muscles and a pressure building in my head.
“God, what is wrong with me? Am I supposed to persevere, or am I supposed to walk away and rest for a while? Why do I have no words?”
I lay in the quiet for only a matter of seconds before I heard it.
“Rejoice before the Lord your God in everything you put your hand to.”
Ouch!
Not a lot of rejoicing going on inside me today. Pressure has a way of stealing my joy if I am not careful. It gives me tunnel vision and not in a good way.
I see problems.
I need solutions.
But the pressure keeps my mind going in circles, worrying the problem from every angle. And it keeps me from seeing the solution.
Now I’ve been instructed as to where the real solution to a problem always lies.
I turn to the skies and try to rejoice.
“Thank you, Jesus,” I whisper. “Thank you for the answer. I choose to rejoice today- before you, my Lord and my God.
I feel some of the tightness ease in my neck as I close my eyes and focus on rejoicing before him.
Are you like me, not always remembering to rejoice when stress and pressure descend?
Maybe you don’t exactly love what you are putting your hand to today.
Like doing the next mundane task that comes with the territory of being a momma to little ones.
Or the stress of dealing with a co-worker who seems bound and determined to find fault with you no matter how hard you try.
Maybe you are grieving the loss of a job you loved dearly, wishing your hand was still there.
Or you feel anxious about whether your hand will work well enough on your first day in a new setting.
Maybe your hand feels stuck in the same day-to-day routine.
Life isn’t always exciting and certainly not easy. We often find ourselves in struggles or challenges and it is then we have a choice.
We can choose to worry, or we can come before the Lord, choosing to rejoice there.
I guess I will rejoice even though my pen has no words.
Oh, wait!
What am I doing right now?
Writing!
These words may not be my best words or the words I wanted to write, but they are what he has given me today.
And so, I rejoice before him.