Have you ever pulled at a set of string lights, wound up and tightly tucked away, only to sigh at the undeniable birds-nest state of every wire, bulb and loop?
How often is it, that our souls echo that same sensation?
Caught up in the rat race, in an effort to locate that which brings light.
Tangled between a life full of rest, and a life full of noise.
Messily strung together, even though we tried our utmost to tidy away the evidence.
We stare at that scribble of wires, and have to choose.
Do we give up? Claim defeat? Let it go? Throw it away?
Or sit there patiently unwinding the chaos until those string lights can be hung, once again?
Both options are valid.
And therein lies the wrestle.
Sometimes, what you need is to release what once was, and leave it behind. To see that in this instance, freedom looks like acknowledging that you are no longer held hostage to the memories inside. That to farewell this set of lights is like closing a chapter, but the moments that they served you will be forever etched in your mind. Moments felt and moments freed. Not lost, but held close. A gentle goodbye.
Sometimes, what you need
is to release what once was,
and leave it behind.
But sometimes, what you need is to step into the middle of the muck, and soldier on until those lights can sparkle again. To take that time, unfurling and uncurling, unravelling and unswirling, step by step by miniscule step. Until the day that you can hang those same lights in their special spot, flick that switch, and watch their soft glow emanate from within. Spreading oh so slowly to warm the souls around them.
But sometimes, what you need
is to step into the middle of the muck,
and soldier on until those lights can sparkle again.
Neither is better.
Both are valuable.
And only in the wrestling, will you find your answer.
So, sit.
Sit with the memories that float your way.
Sit with the feelings that ebb and flow.
Sit with the questions; the aches; the wondering.
Linger with what provokes you. It’s part of the process. This uncomfortable wait. The not-knowing, and yet trusting that it will be okay. This will be okay. You will be okay.
Linger with what provokes you.
Sharon Garlough Brown
So many times, I’ve circled this block. I’ve unfurled those lights and curled them up again. Perhaps not on the literal walls of my home, but in the shaping of who I am, how I think, what I do, and how I define what matters to me. There are some that I’ve farewelled with a gentle goodbye. There are others that I’ve spent time and care and investment in, and parting ways has still been the only way forward. And still more that I’ve persevered and pursued and tweaked and twisted until one day – finally – those lights share their embers with us once more.
You, too?
Friend, those tired lights tucked in the corner of your home – and your soul – are not wasted. They will never be wasted.
Because whatever you decide? They will remain a part of your story. And that’s never going to change.
Friend, those tired lights tucked in the corner of your home – and your soul – are not wasted.
There is One who holds you, and those tangled lights, in His hands.
They might be in a tangle. You might be in tangle. But God never is.
Oh what breathing room it brings for my soul, just knowing this!
My prayer for you today is that you, too, would know that breathing room. That sense of rest. One small tangle at a time.
Thankful for you,
Kristy x
Christmas is coming and that tangle can feel overwhelming at times, can’t it. I know, I really do. Looking for ways to find breathing room for your soul, even here? I invite you to download my freebie: 12 hope-soaked prompts for Advent. Let it be a gift, from my heart to yours.
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