It’s been a while. For the first time in months, I am feeling the need to write – perhaps it’s the pause in my schedule or the fact that I just returned from an inspiring trip to Europe.
Either way, I’m here.
This year has been one of my most challenging yet, right up there with 2010’s “Year of the Suck.” The pandemic lockdown left me drained – not the isolation itself, but the ugliness it revealed. To be honest, the most damage I felt was inflicted by those within the Church. It left me feeling tender and exposed, like the betrayal of a lover or close friend. It was sharp and unexpected, bruising me deeply.
Hateful behavior and speech, friends unfriending me because of differing views. People having the audacity to claim God was okay with bitter displays of rage and unforgiveness when it contradicted everything I knew about Jesus Christ. The Church seemed nothing more than a hollow shell.
But the Lord Himself is not ugly. He is patient, slow to anger, and quick to forgive. He is tender and merciful. I knew He would help heal my broken heart, just as He had done before.
And so, I’m here – on the other side of a very long journey.
