My life has not been easy in the midst of the murder of George Floyd and most recently the shooting and successive paralysis of Jacob Blake. In fact my family, my black friends and I are triggered back to our own life-threatening experiences with racism. I am overwhelmed and honestly finding it hard to compartmentalize my hurt even right now as I write this. My heart is deeply broken. I am exhausted. I am hurting. And I am not the only one. YOU may be feeling overwhelmed, heartbroken, exhausted, hurting, and finding it hard to compartmentalize the grief and pain swirling around in the world and in your own circumstance. 

But God. He descends into our circumstance with deep empathy and tears in his eyes to remind us of His promises for the future and like Hagar, we know in that moment our God is “the One who sees me” (Genesis 16). Our God sees your ministry. Our God sees your finances. Our God sees your future. Our God sees your family. Our God sees your overwhelmed, your broken, your hurting, your exhaustion. Our God sees you. Be encouraged saints, the God of the Universe sees you. 

As a trainer, teacher, coach, and mentor I am all about what is most practical. So as you sit in this strange season that is making its way into our new reality, here are some places to begin: 

1. Take Care of Yourself – I know we all have heard the language of “self care,” but really what does self care look like? What really restores our soul? Listen to the most recent episode of the Learning in Community Podcast where we break it all down.
2. Stretch your Soul – God had to stop the world for some of us to pay attention to our soul. Do not take this time for granted. The Bible Project “Fasting & Feasting” and Spiritual Symmetry Series – Resource mentioned on the Learning in Community podcast as just one spiritual practice that has been valuable to me during this time of living in a new normal. 
3. Learn Something – With all the noise, a natural response is to put our heads in the sand. But what if we listened through the noise for what and who is crying out? What if we listened with our gift of discernment in the Holy Spirit for where the heart of God is breaking? OnRamp: Two Christians Talking About Race Podcast – With awareness of racial violence being exposed during Covid-19, you may find yourself frozen with what to do next. A great first step is establishing a base level understanding of the context of race. And this short podcast is a great place for believers to start the journey. 

I hope you are able to take some steps this month to care for mind, body, and soul and allow Jesus to move in new ways as we launch into the Fall.