Resilient: Restoring Your Weary Soul in These Turbulent Times

by John Eldredge

The human brain processes information in the form of narrative. This is one more example of how deeply story is woven into the fabric of reality.3 Story is the way we orient ourselves in the world. Story is how we figure things out, bring order and meaning to the events around us. The story we hold to at any given time shapes our perceptions, hopes, and expectations; it gives us a place to stand. In this mad hour on the earth, what story are you telling yourself—or letting others tell you?

This is key for understanding others and our own response to challenges in our life

Most importantly, is it the story God is telling? We are living in a story, friends. A story written and being unfolded by the hand of God. Despite what the world is shouting at you, the story of God is still the story of the world. This is the hardest thing to hang on to, and the most important thing to hang on to: the story of God is still the story of the world.

The story the world is telling is upside down

The story of God should get more of your “attention time” than any other media.

The pandemic was an apocalypse in the true meaning of the word—it revealed many things about us and our world. We don’t like much of what it uncovered, including the fact that we are not as resilient as we thought we were when things were going smoothly.

have counseled thousands of men and women, and I can tell you with utter confidence—both from their experiences and my own—that whatever else the enemy brings against you, he will always bring with it a feeling of I don’t want to fight this. This feeling is called ennui, a weariness of spirit, a malaise, that sense of I just don’t want to fight anymore. This is Kierkegaard’s sickness unto death, by which he meant “intensified doubt, super-doubt, mega-doubt.”5

Worship is also a declaration of faith—declaring the goodness of God, who he is, what he’s done. (And the demons absolutely hate it, so it’s a great form of spiritual warfare!)

If you want to become a wholehearted person, you must reach the point where happily, lovingly, you give absolutely everything over to God. You make Jesus your everything, your all-in-all. Not only is this the fulfillment of your heart’s created destiny, it is the source of all recovery and resilience. Nothing can be taken from you because you’ve already surrendered everything.