Life…such an amusing topic. Pairing good with the bad and the righteous with the evil. We walk this Earth with a blindfold, lost and confused, wondering what the purpose could be. What does everything really mean? Opening your heart and easing our peculiar minds with a spiritual lens eases those suffocating questions and changes our perspective on our strange world. Spiritually viewing the world opens a welcoming lens that soothes such confusion and pain of uncertainty that we seem to face on our lonesome journey’s through life.
A New York Times article describes an interview with the outstanding actor and comedian Jay Pharoah and what the cross symbolizes to him. He divinely uses God’s intentions and states that when facing God “…you will get derailed, because that’s just how it goes, but at the end of the day if you’re trying earnestly to do the right thing, God will carry you through everything.” I feel that Pharoah narrowly highlights that life was never meant to be an easy ride. Unfortunately, the world does not stop for anyone no matter what we are facing. We humans feel that no matter how many people are around us, we are never reached by our peers, as if they don’t understand, as if they don’t even care. When Pharaoh tells us that we will get “derailed” I interpret it as we fall and we stumble and we feel that there truly is no escape. Just feeling as though you are not alone and reaching for a being out of this world, whether you stick with it or not, is relieving. Knowing that we are not alone, knowing that we can be touched in a place humans can’t reach. What a welcoming feeling.
I conducted an interview with Philip, a friend of mine who grew up in a religious household that abides by religious principles. When asking him about how his religion impacts his individual identity, Philip stated that the bible is his guide through everyday life. He never feels alone and encourages the idea that sensing you are not alone and cared for by a loving being is enough to make a man push forward in life. Handfuls of mental distress worsen as those who struggle feel that no one is recognizing their heart aches. Everyone just wants their struggles to be viewed but never wants to ask someone to see that. With that they go off and do intense actions to prove their pain worthy of recognition, worthy of somebody’s sympathy, deserving of someone’s help. Instead of seeking refuge through worldly desires, Philip suggests that leaning on the Lord and his favor, the weight on your heart will be lifted. You will then proceed to realize the only being’s attention that matters is the loving Lord.
Hearing from two people who have faced worldly struggles and looked towards religion for a relief shows that, whether serious or not, you can crawl out of whatever hole you feel you are trapped in. Being recognized for who you are inside and out, without being criticized. That’s what it’s all about. God loves, he doesn’t love you for what you do to him, he loves because he is our creator which is why he would never put us through struggles that we are incapable of overcoming. Don’t curse the lord’s name for what he is putting you through, lean on him with full faith that he will get you out of the place you are in. And with that, it’s as if the heavy in your heart has lightened as though it was a balloon. It breathes a new breath of life into someone who may feel abandoned by the world.
