The Struggle is Real

Do you remember learning about quicksand in school? We were taught how to identify it and how to escape it. It wasn’t even just in school; it was written into the storylines of many movies and it was addressed in various survival shows.

I remember it seeming like quicksand awareness and education was a top priority; you know, in case we ever got caught in it.

But honestly, have any of us actually ever had to deal with quicksand?? Anyone?… Anyone?… 🤷🏼‍♀️

Well, regardless of our experience and expertise (or lack thereof) on quicksand, we all know the basic concept: the more you struggle the more you sink.

While quicksand isn’t quite as dangerous as is portrayed in movies, it’s still true that if we panic, move rapidly, or try to fight against it we can end up sinking further and creating a vacuum tight seal around us.

Don’t our struggles in life sometimes feel like quicksand?

Maybe we saw it coming, or maybe we didn’t, but we find ourselves stuck in a struggle. And the more we worry, the more we try to take evasive maneuvers, the more we try to fight the problem, we only ever end up sinking further.

After fighting and struggling, to no avail, we give up the fight and give in to the problem. There’s no possible way we can keep fighting this, our strength is depleted and the problem has somehow strengthened.

So we give up the fight because, at a certain point, defeat feels a whole lot easier to accept.

Last year my church did a fast for Lent (40 days leading up to Easter). For that fast I committed to giving up my need to be productive. I know, for most people that is not a sacrifice in their life. For me though, it was a real struggle.

I have this incessant voice that tells me I need to be productive at all times. If I’m not accomplishing something then I’m wasting time. When I watch TV I feel guilty for not getting other things done. When I read a fun book I feel like I should be reading something more educational or inspirational. Even hobbies feel less like fun and more like a task to be finished.

As you can imagine, this means I have an incredibly hard time relaxing.

In recent years I’ve heard more and more about the positive impacts and the necessity of rest, both physiologically and spiritually. This led to the decision to fast productivity in an effort to focus more on rest.

As I was in prayer one day I was sharing my heart with God about how hard this was for me. I knew that I needed to focus more on rest but I just couldn’t stop thinking about being productive. I took a big sigh and said “I guess it’s just something I’ll struggle with forever”.

Quicker than I could even think another thought, the Holy Spirit intervened. “No, you don’t have to struggle with this forever.”

I was stopped in my tracks. “You’re right!”, I thought. “Why do I keep fighting and struggling with this? There are counselors and other resources that can help shape a better perspective in my mind. I have a God who can heal my unhealthy thoughts. I have the ability to decide what is valuable (like rest) and pursue that instead. I don’t HAVE to keep struggling.”

I realized that I was fighting so hard against productivity but, like with quicksand, I just kept sinking further and struggling harder. Until I learned that I needed to stop fighting.

You know the key to escaping quicksand, right? It’s that we stop struggling and trying to fight our way out. With slow, relaxed movements and by leaning our body weight back (like trying to float in water) our weight redistributes and rises to the surface, allowing us to swim to safety.

It seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it? To NOT fight when your life is on the line. But it’s the only way to escape the quicksand.

In the struggles of life, sometimes we need to let go of the fight. I don’t mean we let go of the fight by allowing it to destroy us. I mean we let go of the fight by giving it to God.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.

Below is a picture of a yolk. It’s a device that is placed around the necks of a pair of livestock. Carts, wagons, farm equipment, etc is hooked up to the yolk so that the animals can carry the heavy load. The effectiveness of the yolk comes from the way that two animals work together to share the load.

When we have a relationship with Jesus we are “yolked” alongside Him through this life. But when He says “take my yoke upon you…for my yoke is easy…” it is because He takes all of the burden and weight upon Himself.

Jesus encourages us to rely on His strength to carry our struggles. As we give our struggles over to Jesus, we find rest.

YOU don’t have to struggle with some of the things in your life.

By giving our burdens over to God we have faith that He is working all things together for our good. When we let go of our worry we create space for God to bring us peace. Letting go of our struggles introduces freedom into our lives.

Will there be days that our thoughts incline back towards our struggles? Yes, of course. It’s very possible that we still live with the presence of our worries and problems. But “living with something” and “struggling with something” are very different scenarios.

To struggle is an endless fight. To struggle is to have major difficulty in trying to cope. To struggle only wears us out. To live with something, however, is to acknowledge and accept its presence while not trying to fight it. To live with something does not wear us out or worry us.

While we may have to live with some undesirable situations, we don’t have to struggle with them for the rest of our lives.

-Stephanie Lauren Jordan