By: Kristina Fertala
The unknown… It’s a deep dark hole, one that quickly forms when we allow ourselves to sit and ponder over it. What will our future careers be, who will our spouses be, will I be successful in accomplishing my dreams? These are all questions (among many others) that circulate through our heads at any given moment in time. It is so easy to think beyond the now, concerned and worried about what the future has in store. This time of year especially provides for many unknowns, as summer comes to an end and the school year or new jobs begin.
I myself am currently walking into a season of applying to a highly competitive, highly desired heath program and it is terrifying. Everyday I go through highs and lows of enough and not enough, confidence and insecurity. However, what these waves are really pointing to is the condition of my heart and my waves of faith. At the peak of each high, I am so confident in the faithfulness of the Lord and secure in the direction He is leading me. However, in the lows, although I tell myself I am still faithful, my lack of confidence is true evidence that my faith is low.
Going through this pattern of highs and lows is exhausting, and only life giving half of the time… And let’s be honest, nobody’s got time for the terrible odds of a 50% life giving life. This exhaustion has convicted me to realize the truth, the future is not under my control, however I am called to be a strong participant in it.
Isaiah 40 has been a great reminder of faith and the type of participation were are to have in this life,
“Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. “ (v. 30-31)
I recently am finding myself returning, time and time again to these verses, and honestly the whole chapter. Isaiah 40 is titled Comfort for God’s People, even just the title brings comfort! And the comfort does not stop at the words of this passage… the more we fill ourselves with the truth of God’s control and the comfort of His promised future for us, the more our hearts are open to the Holy Spirit. Allowing it to make our lows more shallow and our highs much wider.
Are you allowing yourself the time to recognize your lows? And what are you doing when you realize you have found your thoughts traveling down that dark hole of the unknown?
Take some time reading through Isaiah 40 and use it as your tool to guide you and provide you with the comfort that the title promises.
Photo Cred: Chelsea Stellar
With a drive for achievement in the scientific world, Kristina is completing the finishing touches on her Masters in Neuromotor control. However, at heart she is a pearl, continuously seeking to be refined by her Father and all the while living a grand life. Keeping with the knowledge that with a little glitter, a white dress, and the Julie Andrews life soundtrack it is well with her soul.
