Friends, I hope this finds you well — but I know many of you are not well at all.
Some of you are heartsick, lonely, anxious, stretched, and deeply weary. Some of you can’t see any light at the end of your tunnel. There is no silver lining in your case; no winds of change are stirring on your horizon. You feel stuck in this place, this body, this job, this tension, this marriage, this situation, this chronic fatigue – forever.
Some of you are really angry at the way it’s all turned out. What could you possibly have done differently back then, you wonder, so that you’d not have to endure this reality now?
Some of you hear no voices of affirmation. Ever. You are invisible. You are never missed when you don’t attend the many things that no one ever invites you to. Your words carry no weight.
Some of you are regularly misunderstood. You seem to irk people at every turn. You are too loud; too confrontational in your tone; too out-of-the-box that everyone else appears to fit so neatly inside.
And some of you are so very tired of trying to be good: Good daughter. Good friend. Good neighbor. Good Samaritan. Good writer. Good eater. Good leader. Good example. Good steward. Good Christian.
‘Good Christian’. What does this even mean?
Good people: There is no ‘good’ Christian. We can’t make ourselves well with a little better planning, a few less mistakes, and a lot more personal effort. These are the words of our enemy.
The truth is: There are bottomless reservoirs in us that remain unwell. We can feel it. But we are not left alone and expected to heal ourselves.
The hope is: We trust in a good God who concerns himself (and his angels) over us. He is working, even now, at making us well.
God does not find you odd. He does not find you lacking or irksome. He is not disappointed in you. No, he finds you indescribably lovely. You have his attention; your words have weight with him.
Imagine the delight – the tender love – that a good and faithful bridegroom has for his bride. Or the love that a kind and protective father feels as he watches his only beloved daughter play.
Picture that kind of love intended for you.
Picture that kind of love poured out for you.
God knows all the places in us that are not well. But he also knows this about himself: He will be faithful to finish the very good thing he has started in you. For God – the only one who is good – will see it all through.
All will be well. Can you trust Him?
Is your name not engraved on his hands?
Peace to you and yours.
Kim
Given Breath 
Oh, my word. How I needed to hear this today, dear friend. Thank you for writing it. 🙂 And just a “God-nod” aside, birch trees are my favorite tree! 😉
Yes! His Kingdom IS a present reality, even when I don’t feel like it. He is with me in the journey. Thanks for this reminder that I needed to hear today.
Kim,Well done.It brought to mind the refrain from the old hymn: “It is well, with my soul!” Horatio G. Spafford
Thank you all for taking a minute to leave a note.
Angie – birch trees! Yes! They are almost otherwordly.
Kimberly -it is hard to see his kingdom in this reality some days, and so we need each other to help us remember. Thank you.
Chris – one of my favorite hymns. Have you heard “All Will Be Well”? Also beautiful.
Kim
Thank you for the words my soul needed to hear. Your words about the one who is too loud and doesn’t seem to fit in so often feel like me. Your writing reveals you to be the same wise and kind young lady I knew in high school.
Beautifully said, Kim. Thank you for wise, kind, helpful and most of all, true words that need to be heard and remembered and repeated over and over again.