Most of us don’t have to look to hard to find a challenge within our world. We are still facing hard days, loss, and struggle. Some of these challenges have become a crisis as their effects are magnified or more severe.
As I looked to define a crisis, I discovered an article by marketing communications agency, Jackson Spaulding. Checklist: How to Know If You Have a Challenge or a Crisis? (2017, August 28) Retrieved from https://www.jacksonspalding.com/blog/checklist-know-challenge-crisis/. Read the entire article here.
The article invites businesses to assess the level to which they are being affected. I think this a powerful strategy that can help us as well. It offers the following questions: Is the challenge we are currently facing causing an effect in our circle of influence? Have multiple people been affected with our response to the challenge we are facing? What has the impact been in our world? Have their been emotional repercussions for us as well as others? Has the challenge caused repetitive failure or the perception of such?
It is empowering to take a look at our own situation and review the depth of its effects. Difficult questions like these allow us to assess the situation beyond our emotional responses. Using this as a self assessment also empowers us to define it for ourselves. We do not have to be influenced by the thoughts and feelings of others who often run out of patience as they try to support us in the crisis. The loving decision to take this action can be the first step in moving toward relief from the crisis we are facing.
A crisis demands our attention and we must apply the information it provides. It is useful as it gives the state of affairs for the crisis. Perhaps it is reflected in the diagnosis you been given or the amount of money in your savings account. This is the reality you are facing at the moment and it is not a lack of faith to acknowledge it. I offer that it is the equivalent of the indicator on your vehicle’s dashboard for your gas tank. If the indicator shows that your gas tank is empty, then it is providing some pertinent information that lets you know that your vehicle needs gas sooner than later.
Similarly, the information we receive in our crisis can provide pertinent information, as well. Others may reflect to us the change in our temperament. We may start to withdraw from the things that once brought us joy. We may struggle to show up for our day with a positive attitude; we may struggle to show up at all. Use this information to assess your state of crisis, what and who is being affected, and explore what steps may address these needs.
For some this seems simple, too simple in fact. Some can attest that reviewing the crisis only led to limited options and increased distress. It led to more days where it was difficult to show up and everybody around is being affected by the windstorm of emotions. It would appear that the crisis is on top and we can only hope to hold on until it’s over.
This ‘either or’ mentality says that while the crisis is wreaking havoc on my life, it is winning and therefore, I lose. I get that. It even seems pretty reasonable. It feels pretty normal to categorize things and our minds can’t help it. We have to identify which side of the issue you are on when we discuss hot button issues. We have to know if you are in or out, a supporter or a neigh sayer, a winner or a loser. When we look at the crisis, all we see is how we are failing and how we lose.
The only response to a crisis is to clearly state that this tragedy is the absolute worst thing we have ever faced. There is no hope in it and it was meant to destroy us. We can only hope to keep our head above water until the end comes. I want to lift up another option. It’s not either or; its yes and… Yes, we can accept the information that the crisis presents and choose to put it in it’s proper perspective and our faith can help.
As believers, we have the Word of God to apply to our crisis. It contains the guidance that offers a holy perspective that speaks revelation to our hearts and our circumstance. How do I know this? The answer is found in Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ. NLT This confirms that the Word of God is the Good News we can apply liberally to our weary hearts and impossible circumstances.
Find a passage of scripture that shares the account of a victory that mirrors your challenge or speaks to your heart. Get familiar with it and stand on its promises. Let it remind you that God has never been caught by surprise by any crisis and that He still has a plan for your life. Replace your name within the story and read it aloud. Counteract the reality of your situation with the revelation of God’s Word.
Embrace the ‘yes and…’; the reality and the revelation. Strengthen your resolve in the crisis. Decide to actively build up your faith and seek God on what to do with the information. Allow the Lord to use the crisis to develop your mindset, to sustain you, and to richly bless you.
HOPE-Filled Thought: I will certainly bless you, and I will multiply your descendants beyond number. Hebrews 6;14 NLT
Prayer: Thank You Lord, that you promised never to leave us or forsake us. Even in the midst of a crisis you are near. Help us to embrace the information that the crisis provides while we seek the revelation of your supernatural power. We receive this promise with joy. And it is so. Amen.
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