Day 29, When There is Nothing to Look Forward To

I white knuckled it through every day, day after day. I was doing my best to be a strong mom, a resilient woman, and a somewhat pleasant wife. I tried to keep things clean, organized, and on schedule. I also tried to, as I talked about in previous episodes, eat only “good” foods. However, life would start to feel dull and dark and hard. Eventually, I would plan to just have a little or just one glass. But, the moment I cracked the lid on all that pressure, I quickly lost control. 

There are three things for you to consider if you feel like there is nothing to look forward to. The first, obviously, is to pick something healthy and wholesome that you can do for yourself and then look forward to that. We talk about this on Days 9, 15, and 21. However, the next two things you can do are even deeper: ease up and practice presence. 

Ease up on yourself. Those expectations and all that pressure, if it leaves no room for some sweet God-made pleasures in your life like caring for your body and having meaningful relationships, then you need to slow down, girl. More than likely, there is something that you can either let go of or ask for help with. 

Practice being present. Life is never as awful as what we are worried about might happen or trying to sort out what has already occurred. God has provided for today. 2 Peter 1:3 says His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” We know that God hasn’t left us without everything we need to live a beautiful life. We need to stop and breath and come back to the here and now. 

Journal Prompt: Do you feel like you have something to look forward to today? Is it something that upholds the kind of life you want to lead? What kind of pressure do you feel like you are putting on yourself throughout the day? Are you staying in the present or are you living in the past or worrying about the future? 

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