A Holy Lightheartedness

crackley10205
Jul 2
2 min read

We live in troubling times.The over-connectedness of our online generation. The media feeding us one anxiety-producing story after another first thing every morning. The polarity of our nation and its politics. The lack of tolerance and respect for humanity and neighbors in general.

We do. We live in troubling times.

But what if we could live in this current climate with a holy lightheartedness?“What’s that?” you may be asking.

I coined this phrase over the last couple of years. It’s one that resonates deeply with my overly optimistic, wildflower-type spirit.

Basically, what I mean when I talk about a holy lightheartedness is this: It’s a faith so deeply rooted in the attributes of God that no matter what comes, what looms, or what “might be,” I can still have some level of skip in my step and a twinkle in my eye because no circumstance can rock the deep hope that lies at the center of my faith.

As a Christ-follower, I know the end of the story, and I can say it (and live it) with full confidence: it’s victory.

I don't say this thoughtlessly or with a lack of sensitivity either. I know suffering and I’ve seen unspeakable suffering in the lives of people I love deeply. There is room (an abundance of room) for deep lament and gut-level wails over the very real pain we all face. I’m not suggesting otherwise.But what I am suggesting is this: many of us Christians are walking around deflated and defeated. We are drowning in our anxieties. And I can’t help but wonder about the Proverbs 31:25 woman who can “laugh at the days to come.”

How can she do that? She can laugh at the unknown of the future because knows her God and knows her ultimate fate.

So dear Christian sojourner, be encouraged. Your lament is real. But wipe your tears, because your joy is real too. And unlike our extremist this-or-that culture's mantra...they can coexist.You can know the scale will ultimately tip toward joy because of Christ.