On catching our breath

Have you ever been kicked in the gut?

OK, maybe not actually kicked in the gut but have you ever had something hit you so hard or you fell far enough that you got the “wind knocked out of you”?  You know that feeling?

What’s even worse, sometimes, is when things happen in life that don’t actually knock the wind out of you physically but emotionally – news of serious health problems, divorce, job loss, broken relationships, people you love making terrible choices. It all can cause that “kicked in the gut” feeling.

This has happened more than a few times in my almost 27 years. I’m sure it’s happened to you, too.

Because life just has a nasty way of kicking us in the gut, sometimes.

In these moments, when nothing else helps and I find no comfort in anything on earth, the salve to my wounds is the fact that right in those moments – right there in my shock, anger, disappointment and saddness –  my God is so close to me and he knows that feeling.

There’s a verse I found a while back that I was stuck on for a bit. Sometimes reading the Bible is just like that: you come to a verse and you have to pause and camp out on it for the time being. As you read it over and over, day after day, the truth and reality of it goes deeper and deeper. Then those verses become ones that are so close to your heart because you’ve worked it into your very being.

This was one of those verses for me:

If your heart is broken, you’ll find God right there; if you’re kicked in the gut, he’ll help you catch your breath. Psalm 34:18 (Message Version)

My God is in the business of helping his kids catch their breath.

So whether or not you’ve had a recent “kick in the gut”, remember…when it comes, our great God is close

and he is kind

and he is so, so good

and he’ll most definitely help you catch your breath.