Some days, we don’t even have what we have.
Yesterday was like that for me. I sat down numerous times to write something about Lent and just. had. nothing.
At first I was frustrated. And then I felt a weird self-imposed pressure. Overall I was experiencing some sadness and isolation. My energy was low. So I just let myself be in it for a while.
Soon I thought about how smart it is that our brains force us to take breaks, and what is even better, is if insight comes from the break.
That got me thinking about how often we force results. Why do we do this?
To keep up?
To check boxes?
Certainly, it is different for everyone. And I’m positive it also has something to do with how we deal with uncertainty. Forcing a result can be disappointing at best, disastrous at worst. There is truly only one thing that gets us from uncertainty to certainty, and that is faith. However you define faith, it’s still the only bridge.
The next time I have nothing to give, I think I will make myself consider this more deeply. If I am coming up blank or just simply don’t know what to do, it may be a signal to get quiet and listen.
Doing this yesterday led me to insight - the revelation that sometimes it's when we think we have nothing to contribute that our words mean the most. To someone out there, this will help.
