Just Continue That Thought...

A thought by John Eldridge in his book,  Resilient  (p. 34). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) It really is. Earlier John says, "It’s almost shocking when we realize how spun up we’ve been. 'Don’t freak out' is essentially what Jesus was saying. This advice is drilled into every form of military training and survival course—when things get hot, don’t freak out. Keep your cool so you can make good decisions." He says, ". . . a simple, satisfying step is to get your head out of the 'wars and rumors of wars' and back into the story God is telling. For example: the story of God should get more of your 'attention time' than any other media. "If you spend thirty minutes a day consuming what is called news (this includes all social media), then you need to spend more than thirty minutes—maybe twice as much—in the Scriptures or listening to biblical podcasts. Instead of using your downtime to sc...

A thought by John Eldridge in his book,  Resilient  (p. 13). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) And that is so true but let's go back to set this thought up. Earlier John said, "When the human heart and soul experience month after month of disappointment and loss, death rolls in. Dr. Richard Gunderman described the progressive onset of disillusionment as the accumulation of hundreds or thousands of tiny disappointments, each one hardly noticeable on its own. The loss of hope and dreams suffocates the Primal Drive for Life. He says, "But our God has provision for us! "I know, I know—most of you think that what you need right now is three months at the coast. Walking on the beach, drinks on the deck, and with all my heart I hope you find that. But for most of us, a sabbatical in some gorgeous refuge is not available. What is available is the River of Life, God himself, in ways we have not yet tapped into." He ...

A thought by John Eldridge in his book,  Resilient  (p. 1). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) And we do have that longing, don't we? John continues, "It has slumbered in the depths of our souls ever since we lost our true home. For our hearts remember Eden. "Most of the time this beautiful, powerful longing flows like an underground river below the surface of our awareness—so long as we are consoled by some measure of goodness in our lives. While we are enjoying our work, our family, our adventures, or the little pleasures of this world, the longing for things to be good again seems to be placated." He goes on, "But when trials and heartbreaks wash in, the longing rises to the surface like a whale coming up for air, filled with momentum and force. This is especially true after times of severe testing, because during the testing we are rallying. But when the storm subsides, the longing for things to be good ...

A thought by John Eldridge in his book, Resilient  (p. xii). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Let's go back a bit.  In talking about what we have been going through during the Covid-19 pandemic,  John says, "Follow me closely now. To be suddenly stripped of your normal life; to live under the fear of suffering and death; to be bombarded with negative news, kept in a state of constant uncertainty about the future, with no clear view of the finish line; and to lose every human countenance behind a mask—may I point out that this is exactly the torment that terrorist regimes use to break down prisoners psychologically and physically?" He says, "Folks, this had a traumatic effect, and we’ve got to plan for our recovery and find new resilience. " 'At least we can get back to our normal lives,' one friend said. But that’s not true either. I know you want it to be true, but events are converging that preve...