I saw it.

I saw the social media post that broke my heart.

The person that I’ve carried in prayer, the leader that I’ve respected, the friend that had a huge impact on my life, they’ve let me down.

Unfortunately, failure comes in all shapes and sizes, and while media most often emphasizes the failures of the world around us, it’s not the only source of failure that many of us experience day to day.

The disappointment is tangible.

I think disappointment weighs more heavily than any other burden. When everything and everyone you’ve believed in comes crumbling down, what remains?

Perhaps it’s the season of life I’m in, maybe it’s the cultural climate of the world we live in, or, possibly, it’s the outside influences of media and other things that I’ve consumed that have left me asking this question more than once. What remains? Where do we go from here?

I so easily get stuck in the throes of a world in conflict, between disappointment and purpose, and in the wars that wage within my mind that never seems to cease.

This past week, I felt like Holy Spirit told me to “hit the pause button” on all of it. To just stop, stop all of it, and be still.

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” (Psalms 46:10, ESV).

You see, I have slipped into magnifying the voices and noise of the world around me, their thoughts and opinions about what’s happening in the day to day, above the still small voice of God. When I wrote the blog, “Liar, Liar,” I discussed the power of the lies that we believe about ourselves above the promises of God over our lives; however, even when we start to believe God’s truth about us, sometimes we forget to listen to the truth He speaks about Himself, about the world around us, about the people we interact with, and everything that’s going on.

So pause. Be still. Know that He is God. He will be exalted in the earth.

In the face of disappointment, in failure, in the ups and downs of life, there can be only one response: to know God and remain in that place of relationship with Him. We can see in the life of Jesus that understanding God’s heart and thoughts about the day to day, what He desires of us, and what He would have us do in each moment are the most important responsibilities we have when we say “yes” to Jesus’ Lordship.

So, my encouragement to you today is to press pause on the busyness of life and take time for Him. Seek the will of the Father, pursue a relationship with Jesus, shut off Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and all the other sources of entertainment and take time to listen, to know Him, and start or restart your relationship with God.