Most teens think that they have to be strong when facing their problems, their family's problems, and their friend's problems. And coming from a military family, I totally understand. I was raised to be strong in whatever I did, in the choices I made, in the way I handled my personal trips and stumbles, the way I help other people in their own crashes and falls, and in my faith journey. So I understand the whole, "I can't be weak, I can't be weak! My friends need me, my family needs me, and I can't let myself down one more time. I can't be weak, I just can't." that many teenager's my age have haunting them in their head when they close their eyes and take a deep breath and try to go to sleep at night.
The funniest thing is that when we (no matter the age) are in that problem, we tended to think we are the only ones with the problem, and that we are all alone with it with no one to help us, BUT that isn’t true no matter, everyone sees that you’re not alone, no matter if you believe in a God or not. My Mom, the beloved woman she is, will often reminded me that I don't have to battle things out on my own. But as we all know, when we are teenager's we think, "Oh well, she is supposed to say that, she my Mom, and she loves me." (or something like that to a degree.) So, I often talk to my friends, who will tell me the honest and brutal truth (whether I want it or not). And one of my best friends told me something really great one day when I was having a normal drama filled teenaged day. He said, "God did not make you to carry the weight of the world. He did not. And he does not want you to feel like you are ever alone, no matter if you are physically alone or not. Because He is always there with you, for you, so that He may carry everything of yours, so you, His child, may have the freedom to walk without struggle, without falling down. So Sydney, talk to me, because keeping everything inside like you do sometimes, trust me, isn't healthy, and you aren't alone, God and I are here. He's holding everything up, and my arms are wide open waiting for you to take my hug." For once what one of my best friends said, really made since. And the weird thing was that it stuck with me, and for this long too. I started to talk to God about it, because I always knew that God was there holding everything up, I guess I just needed to be reminded of it. When I went to God about what my friend said, I found that listening was really hard to do. But once I started to listen, I felt a sense of peace over me, and even though my problem wasn't fixed yet, I felt better about going into the next day. Facing it, being reminded that I had someone on my side who would never drop my problems on me, but carry them for me, so I may face the day without crashing on the ground.
So do teenagers have to hold the world up? No, God does that on His own, and we (teenagers AND adults) need to remember that simple fact.
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