'Stuck in a Moment'

  by Karise Hutchinson

Transition.  A word cited often, but vague in interpretation.  For the scholars among you, I know it is not the Oxford Dictionary definition, but it has been my experience when listening to others.  It wasn’t until I journeyed a profound stage of transition that I encountered the reality of this mystery.   So, I write this still stuck in the moment (…. and I can’t get out of it as Bono from U2 sings), 12 months on between point A and point B in my story.  It is a prolonged moment (please note present tense!) where I have been stuck at the very edge of my comfort zone ready to move on to point B even though the exact coordinates and timing remains unclear.  Here is my unfinished story of the space in between, discomfort in the process, and the joy found in rediscovering my inheritance. 

I tell my students “you cannot be learning if you are feeling comfortable”.  Well, eating my own words, I can tell you two things I am learning in my discomfort …..

First, transition is marked by vulnerability.  The real beauty of vulnerability in this moment is not found in clarity (btw did you know God is not in the business of clarity?)  But, realizing that God knows and that is enough.  His plan is always only to reveal it as we become ready to embrace it. 

Second, the time is undefined.  When I talk to others who have walked through a time of transition there is no pattern. For some it may last only a few days, but for others a few years.  We never know how long we will be stuck, but the time is less important.  What we choose to do and believe in this moment is more significant.

In undertaking this new learning, I have discovered it is not a time to waste in waiting.  But rather it is a lifetime opportunity to rediscover joy in the moment.  Here is what I found works best:

 1.     Remind yourself how God has taken care of you this far in your journey.  If you keep a journal (and if you don’t, I would encourage you to start), take time to read and remember.

2.     Make a list of God’s promises and keep them close and visible. God’s promises are like a thread, holding us and keeping us from fraying at the edge.

3.    Forge a deep reliance on your Heavenly Father with daily check in and check out.  This in turn will strengthen your relationship with God and ensure you develop an innate resilience for the next chapter in the story.

4.     Remain authentic to what God has uniquely created you to do and be.  It can be confusing, as many will tell you to do this and that, but I urge you to stay true to God’s course for your life.
 

So transition doesn’t have to feel like being stuck in the moment. It is a time to reposition with deeper engagement and stronger faith.

My final thought is this; anxiety is imagining a future without God.  Trust the author of your story; He knows the beginning from the end.  God will weave the narrative of your story in such a way that allows the challenge of waiting to deepen the meaning of your purpose.  My story may be unfinished for now, as may yours, but the promise of inheritance when we become unstuck is this: “instead of your shame, you will receive a double portion, 
and instead of disgrace, you will rejoice in your inheritance.  You will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours” (Isaiah 61:7).