Languishing
It has been and continues to be a challenging season for me. A downward spiral into a lack of energy, purpose, inspiration (yes, I admit it -- I thrive on inspiration) and a general sense of melancholy pervades my very being. What is this malaise that seems to be settling in? Fatigue, aches and pains. And the blues. Deep indigo blue.
I've experienced discouragement before, but this go around is making itself at home. The sense that it is taking on a permanence is overwhelming. What to do?
Well, like any child of the late 60's I figure I will "Keep on truckin'". That's all I know to do. That with a continual crying out for answers from the only source of genuine help I've ever known.
In the mid hours of last night I found myself awake and praying, a fairly common happening for me. Suddenly it hit me, as though I had never understood it before. There is yet a job to be done:
Matthew 28:19 NLT Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Acts 1:8 NLT And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere -- in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Acts 13:47 NLT For the Lord gave us this command when he said, "I have made you a light to the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the farthest corners of the earth."
The marching orders have not changed. Not one iota. My part in accomplishing this may change. And challenging issues piled high on my plate may still overwhelm. Nonetheless, the goal remains the same.
I am languishing. The mire has brought me down. The stuffing has been knocked right out of me, and along with it, all vision.
But there it was, plain as day: He has clear plans and purposes for us -- for me -- while here on earth. That is the stuff of vision and vitality.
Without vision we perish, flounder, flail. (Boy, am I floundering.) The emotional mountain remains. The role I play must now be discovered. But with fresh vision I have hope that inspiration will bloom again.
Pray that it will.
How thankful am I for His faithfulness! His Word is life. Call out, seek, and He will be found.