If not handled the way God intended, grief can cripple you. Cause depression. Separate you from friends and family. Lose self-esteem and self-worth. Give you anxiety about the future. Make you fearful to do anything for fear of failure. Lose hope. Not value life. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Grief also shows you what you are made of and what you truly believe. The length of grieving varies for each person and the grief they are dealing with. How we navigate that grief is of utmost importance. Thank there is a reason God said “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:4. The Lord knows what grief can do and what happens when we grieve outside of him.
Recently, as I walk my dog, I keep seeing feathers that birds had lost. I thought about if the bird was hurt, was it growing, did it escape an attack, or was it just living. Throughout the walk the Holy Spirit gave me the quote you see.
When depression gets so deep in your bones, you feel as if there is no reason to fly. Feathers slowly drop-off as you continue to believe the lies that Satan amplifies based on what he knows about you. These feathers you lose can be any number of the things I’ve mentioned, from hope to joy and faith. I’m not the first to experience it, but Satan can make you feel that you are the only one who has felt this way. Even David had his moments (Psalms 23:4), and although a physical person may not be after me, Satan is. Using all the emotions, memories, and experiences to stop me from living and only exist.
As I come out of the fog, there is nothing clearer than time has passed and I haven’t moved. But…that doesn’t mean I can’t start today. Because of the Lord wouldn’t let me go, kept speaking, and kept drawing I can see and understand Lamentations 3:22-23 in a new light, “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Today, I begin reclaiming the feathers that were stole, let go, and not regarded with care. Today, I believe the truth of God’s Word and not the manipulation of things that the enemy tries to give me.
Today I start guarding my heart and mind again, so that when thoughts come, the Holy Spirit can be there strengthening me through the attacks.
As I get back into the Word, I’ll start collecting my feathers. The more feathers I collect that are healthy and whole, the better the wings that are rebuilt. Moving despite fear, anxiety, and depression, in God’s strength is how I begin to fly again. When I fully surrender to God, His will, His purpose, and His commands, then I will fly. God will bring these dry bones back to life, as He did the Israelites that came back to Him (Ezekiel 37:4-6).
For all of use struggling mentally. It is time to go through the process and eventually soar.
“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.” Isaiah 40:31