Emily Massey

Photo by: Eli DeFaria- courtesy of Unsplash

It’s Sunday morning.

And I am at home.

I would normally be at church right now with my family, but my (very fussy, teething who is obsessed with comfort-nursing) 7 month old is fighting a cold. Considering we just faced this last week with our 3 year old who is majorly sensitive to pain or un-comfortableness (well, what 3 year old isn’t dramatic, right?), all I can say is “Momma is tired.”

REALLY. TIRED.

Stress has been high, y’all. My right eye won’t stop twitching. Sleep deprivation is starting to become a part of my daily reality.

Where my mommas at?? This is #momlife.

And in a weird, optimistically sadistic way, I love it! Ha!

Moms are weird. Or maybe, it’s just me?

I often wonder if I will be able to physically and emotionally be able to take another hard day. Each day seems to drain every ounce of energy I have to give and sometimes it feels like I have to remind myself to breathe.

Although sometimes I find myself holding my breath when I am stressed to the max (and there has been a lot of instances lately…), I don’t have to remind myself to breathe. My body simply keeps breathing. Adding mom-brain to the mix, I am so glad I don’t have to remember to breathe…I would be in respiratory distress way too many times throughout the day if that was the case!

As I was reflecting upon this basic human function- breathing- I realized how dependent I am upon my Creator to physically remain alive. He is the One who filled my lungs with breath when I came into being and is the One who sustains every single breath since my very first one.

The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things… (Act 17:24-25, NASB).

Why do I worry? 

I think it is important to truly acknowledge this. Instead of complaining about how stressed I am, I need to simply ask myself why I am worried.

This goes for all of us- not just moms. Stress, worry, and anxiety are our body’s response to being overwhelmed. Most likely we are putting ourselves into this state of panic because we are trying to control the outcome and trying to do it all in our own strength. As believers, we know that God is sovereign. We proclaim “God is control.” If we honestly believed this, we wouldn’t allow ourselves to be completely crushed under the weight of the stresses of life.

Life is stressful, but we do not have to live in a constant state of stress. If we do, there must be a part of us that believes we can completely control or fix our circumstances- this is oh so prideful, friends.

…all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you (1 Peter 5: 5b-7, NASB).

I love how these two ideas are connected in these Bible verses.

PRIDE=ANXIETY

HUMILITY= ENCOURAGEMENT & GRACE

When we remain anxious for a long period of time, we are choosing to control the situation and not hand it over to the Lord. We are simply telling God, “It’s okay. I’ve got this. I don’t need Your help.”

Grace is a gift from the Father. It empowers us to walk out our calling and the assignments the Lord has given us. We are weak without it.

Jesus told the Apostle Paul: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

Like breathing, it is by His grace that we have the ability and strength to do anything for Him.  If grace is like the air in our lungs, then constant anxiety is like holding a pillow over your own face.

(I am shouting at myself too…)

Stop trying to suffocate yourself! 

Now, I know that for many people, anxiety goes beyond your thought-life and can be a very serious medical condition regarding chemical imbalances and inflammation in the brain. I have been there many times throughout my life and still struggle with it…hello, crazy hormones! In this case, seek medical attention if you believe your anxiety is caused by a physical problem going on in your body. I believe in total wholeness and wellness: spirit, soul, AND BODY.

No matter what, we need God’s grace and help!

Most of the time, experiencing anxiety, worry, and stress are signs that you are trying to gain control and are struggling. You will undoubtedly experience those things in life (the Bible tells that we must cast our anxieties upon the Lord, so obviously there will be anxieties to cast), but they do not have to be your everyday reality because we should never hold onto them. When we are beginning to panic or stress-out, this is an opportunity to humble ourselves and call out to the Lord for help. 1 Peter 5:7 tells us that He cares for us, and because He is such a good, good Father, He longs to help take care of our needs.

Calling out to the Lord for help should be an everyday occurrence, especially during intense and overwhelming situations.

“Help me, Jesus” is my go-to prayer all-day everyday as a mom of little ones, and I am not ashamed to admit it! His grace and peace come into my situation as I fix my thoughts upon His goodness and faithfulness. I remind my head that Jesus is Lord and that He is in control. Without trying, breath fills my lungs, and hope fills my heart once again.

Take a deep breath and remember that God will care for you, no matter what stresses may come to overwhelm you.

Father, I pray for those who are feeling overwhelmed by their circumstances right now. I ask that You would graciously remind them to surrender their control over to You, the only One who can sustain all things and bring true peace and hope. Thank You for your grace and your strength when we feel so powerless. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

SAVE THE DATE

About: Operation Finale, brings to life one of the most daring covert operations in modern history. Starring Academy Award winner Sir Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, Schindler's List) and Golden Globe winner Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Last Jedi, X-Men: Apocalypse), the film vividly captures the ingenious and brilliantly executed mission to capture Adolf Eichmann, one of the chief architects of the Holocaust.

Fifteen years after the end of World War II, acting on irrefutable evidence, a top-secret team of Israeli agents travel to Argentina where Eichmann (Kingsley) has been in hiding together with his family under an alias Ricardo Klement and execute an extremely dangerous abduction. In attempting to sneak him out of Argentina to stand trial in Israel while being pursued by the country's right-wing forces, agent Peter Malkin (Isaac) is forced to engage Eichmann in an intense and gripping game of cat-and-mouse with life-and-death stakes. 

Operation Finale releases in theaters on August 29.

Watch Trailer:  https://operationfinalefilm.com/

I was feeling somewhat frazzled today. These last few weeks have been a whirlwind to say the least. A tragedy hit our family like a freight-train at the beginning of July (I will share more about that soon), and I honestly cannot believe next week is already August. The "to-do" list in my mind was getting a little too long for me to keep up with mentally, especially with baby James not quite sleeping through the night yet, along with teething, plus fevers and projectile vomiting from an allergic reaction to multiple mosquito bites with my oldest. Thankfully, I'm not living the "mombie" life this time around like I did with Isaiah, but I still need #allthecoffee and as always, JESUS!

So I put the baby down for a nap, prayed, and sat down (with my iced coffee, of course) to write down the tasks that I need to tackle.

Ok, I can breathe a little better.

Now, oddly enough, this blog that I was asked to share was something that helped me see a little more clearly and reminded me once again that GOD IS IN CONTROL. 

In the midst of a very full inbox, an email was waiting for me that God knew I would need to open today, especially after these last emotionally exhausting and draining weeks. I watched the preview of this new TV show called GOD FRIENDED ME that is coming to CBS in September and tears filled my eyes. The message of this TV show is something everyone needs to hear: 

CONNECT TO SOMETHING (OR SOMEONE) BIGGER THAN YOURSELF.

In a world where we are lacking genuine human connection, this show reminds us that God created us for a bigger purpose than ourselves and that His grand design connects us all in someway, and if we yield our lives to Him, we can see His glory revealed through our lives and hopefully point others to Him in the process.

Here is the show's synopsis:

GOD FRIENDED ME is a humorous, uplifting drama about an outspoken atheist whose life is turned upside down when he receives a friend request on social media from God and unwittingly becomes an agent of change in the lives and destinies of others around him. Miles Finer is intelligent, hopeful and optimistic, but he doesn’t believe in God. This puts him at odds with his father, Reverend Arthur Finer, a beloved preacher at Harlem’s Trinity Church for 25 years who is stung by his son’s strong rejection of his faith. Miles feels he’s found his purpose in life hosting a podcast where he’s free to speak his mind, but that changes when he receives the ultimate friend request. After repeated pokes by God, Miles’ curiosity takes over, and he accepts the request and follows the signs to Cara Bloom, an online journalist suffering from writer’s block. Brought together by the “God Account,” the two find themselves investigating God’s friend suggestions and inadvertently helping others in need. Joining them on their journey are Miles’s supportive sister, Ali, a doctoral psych student by day and bartender by night, and his best friend, Rakesh, a sometime hacker who helps Miles and Cara research the enigmatic account. Miles is set on getting to the bottom of what he believes is an elaborate hoax, but in the meantime he’ll play along and, in the process, change his life forever.

Watch the first-look featurette below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6XfmicoyZw

GOD FRIENDED ME premieres on Sunday, Sept. 30th on the CBS Television Network and will air on Sundays (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT).