One of the modules in the Presence Life Planning Curriculum explores self-management, and within it, managing one’s heart and spirit. Seeking God for your source of rest and strength is an essential part of a Christian’s spiritual life. However, when faced with physical, emotional, relational, work, and spiritual challenges, do you wonder how you can continually submit to God’s sovereignty and gain rest?
Challenges in life come in different sizes and shapes, but the one commonality is that they are often not easily seen and understood by others who are not in the midst of the same difficulties. This “suffering alone” feeling can sometimes cause emotional breakdown and even affect interactions with other people in your life. The following is a brother in Christ’s sincere sharing; his difficulties and experiences may not be the same as yours or mine, but we hope his spiritual journey and practice in seeking the Lord can bring you hope and comfort.
[Body]: My body has various weaknesses. Some may be hereditary, and some may have unknown causes, but no matter the etiology, these weaknesses often bring me pain, and I cannot do without a lot of medications every day. I once asked God, “You are the Lord in charge of everything about me, why do you allow my body to encounter these challenges?” God didn’t answer. My pain reminded me of what Paul said about the thorn in his body. Although I asked God to remove it, He did not answer. There was nothing I could do, and the doctors could only help so much. I could only pray. Gradually, I began to understand that God wanted me to pay more attention to healthy eating and balancing between work and rest. I obeyed Him by changing up my diet and sleep patterns that were damaging to my health. I am very grateful that my health has not deteriorated too quickly in the past few years. I thank God for giving me this thorn, because it has taught me to obey and rely on Him every day, return peace in my heart, and find rest in Him.
[Emotions]: Because of my physical weaknesses, my emotions often fluctuated and made people around me uncomfortable. As my physical condition gradually stabilized, I was shocked to realize how badly I had been treating people around me. I asked God to enlighten and help me to be kinder every day, speak more gently, and smile more. The person who benefited the most from these actions was myself. My bad mood gradually subsided, my emotional state was rested and adjusted.
[Relationship]: I value the relationship with my family very much, so I try not to let my family know about my health conditions. I don’t want them to worry, so instead I would focus more on their needs. However, worrying about your loved ones without healthy boundaries can also cause them harm. Sometimes my short temper can turn my genuine care for family into a request for them to comply with my own ideas, which greatly affects our relationship. I now pray for God to help me put aside my own pride and be willing to listen to other people’s opinions. When I let God be the master, relationships with my family members can become more harmonious, and the whole family can return to God’s rest.
[Work]: Because of my faith, I have a certain boundary for work. I will not do anything that is not in line with the truth. Although I have kept my faith, I have become a talking point among my colleagues (and labeled as): unsociable, not knowing how to adapt, often shirking responsibilities, and being an old fogy. Over the years, I have learned to bring these things to God, pray for solutions, and submit to His providence. I would state my bottom line to my colleagues and discuss with them ways to solve the problem. As long as the task did not violate the truth nor is beyond my capabilities, I would try my best and work diligently. Gradually, my colleagues have started to understand the way I work, and sometimes they have even felt more comfortable leaving work to me, knowing that I would do the job well. This has helped me better understand how to practice the truth and live out my faith in the workplace.
[Spirituality]: I believe that every believer will experience times when his spirituality is low, and I am no exception. During those times, I did not want to read the Bible, pray, attend church, or talk to God, and so on. In the past, whenever I felt spiritually low, my approach was to relax myself first, and then see what I could do after a few days. I thank God that He taught me to deal with it in different ways this year, such as walking in nature, looking at God’s creation, quieting my mind, entering into spiritual practice, quietly meeting the Lord or talking to Him, or meditating on some scenes of the Lord Jesus in the Bible and imagining walking with Him; recently, I also started painting for spiritual practice. I thank God for allowing me to use these methods to relax, nourish, and recharge my depressed spirit, so that I can enjoy rest in God.
Reflections and Prayers:
1. In your daily life, how do you manage your heart and spirit? I invite you to take a moment now to be quiet and talk to God.
2. When faced with a challenge, how do you usually handle it?
3. What challenges are you experiencing physically, emotionally, relationally, at work, or spiritually? Please meditate on Isaiah 30:15, and may you find rest in the Lord and regain your strength.
Written by: Phinehas Yeung and Presence Editors
(The author is a participant of the Presence Life Planning Curriculum. The article is part of his reflection during the study. Author retains copyright and grants Presence and its affiliate partners the right of publication.)
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