According to the plan….. Wait That’s Not Right
What happens when you’re trapped in your own four walls? When the very thought about going out makes you weak at the knees and it feels like you can’t move or breathe? When depression, anxiety, and fear trap a once lively sociable person, and turns them into a flake, a hermit, unable to pick yourself up by the bootstraps and carry forward. How do we handle being on both sides? On one side you are the one trapped and all of the ways it hurts. On the other hand the one looking in, and dealing with the pain that comes with always being told no, even after plans were made has to deal with patience, understanding, forgiveness, and somewhere hope.
We all know things don’t usually go according to the plan, but it’s in those failures that we must understand there’s a reason. Sometimes the reason is a better path, sometimes it’s based on a persons free will, but in all things God’s in control. If God sees a path going array, just know that if you’re faithful and remain righteous God’s plan will be for you to prosper. We all make choices and for better or worse those choices affect those around us. A good Christian will uphold to their word and do what they say they are going to do. But what happens when their word is broken because of illness? We all need to understand a person dealing with depression, anxiety, and those who are just lost, will often say and do things that may lead to pain for others. While it hurts to look into someone’s life who’s suffering form that, we must understand that in order for us to be Godly in this situation we must approach with endless love, endless compassion, endless empathy, and endless forgiveness. No one wants to be depressed, and trapped in their own mind. There are lots of reasons for depression, and even if sometimes it’s caused from peoples bad choices, that doesn’t mean they should be condemned by them forever. Our place is not to judge, but to help carry the cross. The fine line is helping whether it’s been asked for or not. If we love someone though, we need to realize that love is the action of doing, not the feeling and sitting back and doing nothing. While love is a feeling, it’s what we do that’s more important.
When we are the ones trapped inside our heads and we can’t seem to break out, we need to be praying. We need to work on our faith, we need to find Godly counsel, we need to ensure we are not becoming stagnant water. We have to keep moving forward, and it won’t be easy, but we have to. We cannot give up who we are, and we cannot become something we were never meant to become. Dealing with addictions, depression, anxiety, hopelessness, and feeling lost, can be some of the worst things to face on the planet. When we forsake everyone around us and we choose to walk a path alone, we are walking away from God. We all turn and walk the wrong path at some point, but it’s important to notice that it’s happening and find yourself wherever you are, and realize that the Devil’s been lying to you. You need to wake up from the fog, and you need to as God to help you back. There will always be people in your life that at the moments notice will help you find your way. There will always be people who care, who love, who support, and who cherish you. If they aren’t in your life right now, when you make that change, God will provide. Just have faith, and as the battle wages on, be strong, fight back, and never give up hope.
When your plans explode and your day doesn’t go the way you want it, I always find myself going back to the words of the great Leonard Snart “Make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan.” No matter where the plans take you, the best you can do is to drop back, evaluate, and move in a new direction. I’m not saying when plans fail it doesn’t hurt, because sure it does. Yesterday when my plans exploded in my face on my birthday I was devastated. I thought for sure history wouldn’t repeat itself, but sure as I’m alive, the plan went off the rails. Instead of going out and having a nice night for my birthday, it turned into an evening in, building on of the coolest Lego set’s I’ve ever built. Not what I wanted, or what I had in mind, but I’m sure that in some way, it was for the best.
When life goes off the rails, just remember the rules: Be patient, an archer waits for his shot, he doesn’t fire aimlessly into the dark hoping to hit something. Be kind, an archer is fierce and doesn’t aim to be cruel to others. Be forgiving, we are all human on this big floating rock in space. We will make mistakes, and we will hurt others. People will hurt us, and it’s in that we must always remember to forgive without question, or without expectation to receive it in return. Never Give UP, we must always push forward and never give up because we know that God is never giving up on us. Dealing with any form of mental illness is hard, and when we are the ones in the wake of it’s destruction, we need to be calm, and caring, not cold and callus. When our plans don’t go the way we want them, have faith that we are where we are meant to be, and trust that God will help place us on the path. It’s for us to listen, and for us to watch for His signs, but in all things trust in the Lord with your heart, and believe you are moving to glorify the Father. People will hurt you, plans will change, life may be flipped upside down, but when you love, when you forgive, when you are gracious, and compassionate, the Lord will bless you, when the time’s right. Have faith, Have love, Have Christ in your heart.
The Arrow Preacher 