Spark of Courage
I am not a morning person. That can’t be overstated. Once in 11th grade, I overslept and came to school FIVE hours late. That’s a giant oversleep!
The only time I can ever remember springing out of bed early in the morning was on Mondays, for the last couple years of high school. Every Monday morning at 6:30 I met with a small group of girls for Bible study and prayer. For the rest of the week, as my worries and fears went up and down, (as they do on any given week but especially in my teenage years) whenever I caught a glimpse of any of the girls from my Bible study—in class, in the halls or lunchroom—I would feel an immediate spark of courage. It grounded me somehow, having prayed with those friends and having read scripture and talked and wondered together. We were different from one another, but our differences were overshadowed by our common hope in Jesus.
A number of years ago I went to speak to some kids at a high school about art and writing. Two girls sat at the front of the class with their arms crossed and faces frozen in drop-dead expressions. All the other kids in the class were listening attentively but I was amazed how powerfully I could feel the peer pressure emanating from the two angry looking girls in the front. And all of a sudden, I remembered that immersive feeling of high school—a landscape that’s hard to see out of when you’re in it. It made me think again how thankful I was for those Monday mornings long ago.
Right now there’s so much anger, suspicion and division nearly everywhere I look. Just like high school, it’s a landscape that’s hard to see out of, and it comes with its own kind of pressures. And although I don’t meet weekly with a small group like I did back in high school, I do have friends I talk to every week. We share scripture, marvel over God’s faithfulness and pray for each other. We’re different sorts of people with different opinions, but our differences are still overshadowed by our hope in the Lord. And it still gives me a spark of courage, just knowing they’re out there in this strange and shifting world.
I hope you’re all staying well this week. And I hope you have people who help you feel more courageous and less alone in the world. But if you don’t, please know that you’re still not alone. God loves you with a steady love that can help you see out of whatever darkness you’re facing.
~Amy