Gabriela and the Awful, Rainy, Bad-News-Filled Day

* [Yes, this title is a play on: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, published in 1972, written by Judith Viorst.]

By: Gabriela Yareliz

What a day it has been.

It was a combination of stress, bad news and having to hold in emotions. I had to walk through the rain like I was walking through a sad movie, walked home with my eyes practically shut, and then got home, where I decompressed and took what felt like my first breath in hours.

As I lived the day, and it’s not over, I may get more bad news, regarding my pet– I don’t know (please pray), I felt like I was blocked for air. My brain, my thoughts, my heart. I seriously wasn’t sure at one point if I was going to make it home. I thought I might blackout. Blacking out on the MTA subway is probably up there on the top 5 things I consider a nightmare. I sat down at my desk, and while I waited for text messages from my mom at the animal hospital to come in, I started reading. I read scripture, and I read words of faith.

I am sharing this, not because I think my day is worth sharing– believe me, I wish I could get a do-over with alternative facts, but because I feel different now than I did when I got home, locked the door and threw myself on my yoga mat to cry.

The difference was made by words of truth. Words I had read, which I am paraphrasing, kept ringing in my ear: What would happen if I believed God? What if I took Him at His word? And by this, I don’t mean everything will be magically ok or loved ones will be magically healed.

No. This game called life doesn’t work like that. What I mean is, what if I truly believed God was with me as He promises to be, always. (Isaiah 43:2) The God of the universe is standing beside me. What if I believed that no weapon against me shall prosper? (Isaiah 54:17) Or that even when life literally throws sh*t and demoralizing injustices in our face, that while God can’t control people, He can still use all of this mess and make something beautiful out of it? (Romans 8:28) He has promised to work EVERYTHING out for my highest good. (The verse says ALL THINGS). Even when I can’t see it. If I remembered that this whole thing is about Him, and He is love, how would that change things?

And the truth is, the reason why I felt different after reading words of truth is because this truth changes everything. It changes everything.

Truth sets us free. (John 8:32). I want to live free every single day.

I write this simply to say that no matter what is happening, you can choose to seek truth. Find it. Cling to it. Cry on it. Be held by it. That’s the one choice we certainly have, always.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we shall not fear…” (Psalm 46:1-2)

That’s all I can say, right now.