Good morning friends! How’s your Tuesday going?

How adorable is this sweet sleeping face? I absolutely LOVE being a Grammie to this precious little human! If you’re a Grandma, Grammie, Oma or Nana… don’t you just LOVE it? I get to squeeze and kiss on this face and I am so thankful for that! I realize this is a huge blessing in my life that not everyone gets to enjoy. Some of you are grandparents that live far away from your grandkids. Some of you may have grandkids that for whatever reason are not a part of your life right now. Some of you may not have any at all. With all those scenarios comes some sort of emotion. Maybe those emotions range from joy to sadness…

I want to talk about that today actually.

I find as I’m getting older I’m more aware of the tension between sorrow and joy. I’m also aware that my emotions are elevated at this stage in my life. I can cry at anything! But I also think that I’ve lived enough life to know there’s never a place of total contentment… there is always something else beyond our grasp, like our heart is in two places. One example for me is Italy. I’m American through and through and love my homeland, yet I will always long for Italy when I am not there.

This little girl was born in America, but as she grows up she will experience this tension, at an even younger age than most, because there are people she loves, and love her, that she is separated by oceans from. Her daddy is from Italy but lives here and just became a U.S. citizen last Friday! We are so happy for him and had a surprise celebration last Friday night with our family. But there will always be this tension their family feels because they live here and her Papa’s family lives in Italy. I know some day that could be reversed and we live here and they move to Italy. So I understand this mix of joy and sorrow as well and I feel for people who’s hearts are in two places.

So how do we live in the middle of this tension between joy and sorrow?

This is something we all have to confront as some point in our lives. This type of turmoil happens when we lose loved ones that we know are in Heaven, but we wish they were still here with us. Let’s take a look at a couple verses that may help us embrace this dichotomy of life…

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13

This tension between our troubles and finding peace IN the middle of them, actually can coincide… and it’s a remarkable feeling! As Christians we know this to be true because as the Holy Spirit works in us to comfort us and guide us, we can feel these verses lived out in our lives. It’s part of the life of a believer because we live this life with one foot here and one foot looking to step into Heaven. We know that this is not our final home and we look forward to our eternal home. God put the desire for eternity (with Him) in every human heart and that is why everyone is always searching for the meaning of life. Deep down we all know there IS more to life…

Let me take a moment to share one of the best books I’ve ever read. I’m not even half-way done and it is already one of my favorites of all time! It’s a book simply called “Heaven” by Randy Alcorn and it is changing everything I ever thought about Heaven. Most likely it’s because I didn’t really know much about the place, but also because there really isn’t much talk about Heaven these days. When was the last time you heard a real sermon on Heaven? When was the last time you had coffee with a friend and talked about Heaven? It’s a shame we don’t take the time to learn more about the place we plan to live forever, if we claim to be Christians! I really encourage you to pick up this book if you get a chance. It’s one of the most important topics a Christian should understand and be excited about, and I’d LOVE to have more people to talk with about Heaven, because it’s going to be INCREDIBLE!

Now back to embracing the mixed emotions God has given us…

I am confident we can trust, and take heart, that God knows every ache and joy we experience and He wants to be there for every one of them.

That is the HOPE we can have when we believe in the power of the Holy Spirit!

It was just yesterday, as I was writing this post that I experience this firsthand. I got a text from a dear friend that I miss so much. When we moved from California we moved away from a group of friends that were a life-giving support system and a huge part of our lives. We celebrated life together, went to church together, shared every big moment and little moment TOGETHER. It was SO hard to leave the comfort of what we dubbed our “FRAMILY.” Over the last few years it has been a hole that hasn’t been filled. They have all since moved from California to Arkansas and are still together… while we are in Colorado. It hurts to be separated from all of them. Knowing they are all together still celebrating life together… and we are not with them is hard. And there’s that tension again… between sorrow and joy, just as I’m writing about it! How can it be more clear that the Holy Spirit is still teaching me?

So what I want to say to you today is this: We CAN live and find joy while in the middle of sadness, and sometimes the only thing that keeps us from falling apart IS the truths of God. We can know that we are right where He has us and we can trust that those reasons are for our good. We can be confident that the Lord does establish our steps (Proverbs 16:9) and we are right where we are supposed to be.

2 Corinthians 12:9 reminded us: “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

Until we are home with Jesus in Heaven, we will have these tensions in many areas of our lives. I wish that weren’t so, but there is strength in learning to find Jesus through all the emotions we face. He promises His grace is sufficient and we can count on that.

It’s just one more way that the power of God is shown to us and through us so that others may see Him.

It’s also a reminder to live our lives with Heaven in mind. Because when Heaven is in our sights, we can look at today with a boldness that is full of hope and joy!

I hope if you are feeling this type of tension in any area of your life you can find peace in the middle of it. Try memorizing Romans 15:13 or better yet, write it in your journal and ask the Lord to bring this kind of peace and hope into your heart.

Have a blessed Tuesday friends!

Hugs,

Laura McCollough