You are Not Alone in the Valley

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." -Psalm 23:4 

My last post was about both storms and "storms" we encounter in life and funny that at church on Sunday we talk about just that. The pain/depression in life and how we are to deal with it. And by the way I am and was talking to myself when I am writing about storms in life. We all are human. We all experience pain and depression as much as happiness and joy. We are not supposed to go through it alone, and we are not alone in our feelings. We have feelings and need to express them. Yet when we are depressed we wallow, cut ourselves off and build walls around us. We hide there; not wanting anyone around, but secretly  wanting to be found. Found by someone, anyone who cares and reaches out a hand to lift us from our valley fortress of solitude and loneliness.

We are never alone, we are sometimes to blind to see the others there in their own fortress in the same land as us. We may say no one does care, no one sees me, or no one can know whats going on. We all have a different view on our life and on those around us. But you are never alone, there are people who care and are reaching out,  including the Creator of the Heavens and Earth, God. We may not see this because we only see the storm in front of us, and the waves, the rain and wind in our face, and the thunder and lightening and thunder making sure we know the storm is there. The friends and family who try to help but only hinder us come around us and give us the typical cliche sayings, all of them we know in our mind and have probably have used ourselves, yet they are not what we need nor are the comforting. We know these things are true but they do not feel like they are true in our hearts in the time of grief, pain and depression.

I don't want to say I have all the answers or any answers at all, but i know what has work for me and they are as follows:

1. Read the Psalms, they are real prayers and crying out to God, like Psalm 42 and 43
2. Give yourself permission to ask "Why?", and ask God "Why?"
3. Tell yourself those cliche things you know that are true, no how stupid you feel
4. Find someway of expressing yourself, either by music, poetry, talking, visual art, let the feelings out and not fester inside of you.
5. Anything else that is not harmful or destructive that helps.
6. Finally let people in who care, and find someone(s) who will always be there for you

I can no honestly say that I am now talking to myself. My Grandpa is and has been in the hospital the past couple of weeks. He originally went in for dehydration and then went back later because he wasn't feeling well and they found a blood clot in his leg on Sunday they did a CAT Scan and found fluid around his lungs and in his stomach. Now he is on oxygen. We are as close as we could be and its kinda depressing that he is this sick but he is 92, and my grandma has been dead for almost three years. I am trying not to work my worries away by busing myself and I am trying not to be a hypocrite and wear the Christian Facade but be real. So I am taking my own advice, I am on my knees with God, I am being open with friends about the situation, I am Staying in the Bible, and I am Listening to helpful songs. I find these songs to be helpful:

•  Kathy Troccoli's Psalm 23
•  Amy Grant's Better Than A Hallelujah
• Superchic[k]'s Stand In The Rain
• Karl Jenkin's Adiemus
• Kuroshio Sea - 2nd largest aquarium tank in the world - (song is Please don't go by Barcelona) (this is just a video i find relaxing)
• Castring Crowns' Praise You in This Storm 

Again I Do Not and Cannot Say I Have All The Answers or Any Answers Really At All. But I hope this helps.