What to Do When You’re Heavy-Hearted

@bethvogt

I’ve heard the term “heavy-hearted” quite a bit recently.

People are heavy-hearted about their life circumstances – from family struggles to friends’ setbacks. People are heavy-hearted about life “out there” – events playing out across the world via nonstop news headlines every single hour of the day.

How do we counterbalance the ongoing challenges that weigh our hearts down?

The visual that came to my mind was of an old-fashioned seesaw – maybe you call it a teeter-totter. Imagine that on one end is your heart, weighed down with:

GriefFearDoubtAngerExhaustion

The other end of the seesaw is stuck up in the air. What can we do to offset our heavy-heartedness?

Consider these three things that help me lighten my heart:

Focus on Unchanging Truth. Circumstances in our lives change. Sometimes they improve. Sometimes they get worse. I don’t know about you, but while things are better in 2021, they’re still a bit too unsettled for me. The headlines unsettle me. Focusing on Truth lifts my heavy heart. This verse is encouraging me this week: When I am filled with cares, your comfort brings me joy. (Psalm 94:19 CSB)Be honest with someone about your heart condition. I have a precious friend who asks me on a regular basis, “How’s your heart?” She knows I’ll give her a truthful answer because that’s the kind of relationship we’ve built with one another. I also have the freedom to ask her the same question. Talking with her, praying with her, lifts the burdens from my heart.Be on your guard. If we’re not careful, we’re inundated with information all day long – and sometimes all night long. I don’t turn the TV on first thing in the morning just to check the headlines. I limit how often I scan the news on my phone. I also try not to check the news right before I go to sleep – that’s a guaranteed way to ramp up my anxiety.

What about you? How do you lighten your heart when it’s weighed down?

What to Do When You're Heavy-Hearted #challenges #hope
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'If you share in a heart-felt sorrow, you can lighten the load of a friend. Sometimes sharing the burden together can mend two broken hearts in the end.' #quote by Wes Fesler #heavyhearted #hope
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