So, this week has been pretty tough.

I know y’all can relate. We’re all finding new normals and adjusting and accommodating and looking for the gifts in the middle of the chaos. It’s not easy, and everything is constantly shifting and changing.

But in the middle of the new battles all around us, the old war is still waging over here. All of this change at one time is a lot for a girl who thrives on schedules and consistency. Learning to adapt to new routines and having more people home all the time and just having everything different takes a toll on a kid who is already on edge most of the time anyway!

But we’ve accommodated and made it work, and things were going along fairly well… until this last week. It’s been little things here and there- her ankle and foot muscles tightening up more and more for unknown reasons, causing her pain at random times… increased irritability and frustration… lots of crying… lots of tripping and falling… restless sleep and waking up multiple times a night.

This morning it all hit me like a ton of bricks when we sat down to work on math review and she had forgotten things that she had just recently mastered. She had made so much progress, and it was all gone, just like that. Her frustration grew and my heart broke into a million pieces as I watched her struggle and witnessed what ESES can do to her so quickly.

So, we hit pause. I took a moment to cry and unload my hurt to the Lord, then took a deep breath, tucked away the school work, and headed outside to play. We soaked up the sunshine and she dug in the dirt and used her imagination and all was well for a few moments.

Friends, it’s okay to just hit pause some days. Sometimes life is hard. Stuff comes at us and we don’t always know what to do with it all. There is nothing wrong with not knowing. There is no harm in crying. And there is no reason we can’t hit pause for a few moments.

We feel big feelings and think big thoughts, but we serve a bigger God. He knows what we need and what we don’t, and nothing catches Him by surprise. Hitting the pause button allows us the opportunity to step back and look away from ourselves and toward Him. It gives us the space we need to shift perspective.

And the great thing about the pause? It’s temporary! When we hit pause, we aren’t stopping. We aren’t quitting. We aren’t giving up. We feel, we release, we shift, and we find grace and strength to keep pressing forward.

“…But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14)

Take a pause if you need it today… then press on! ❤️