#7 The Lift

Have you ever had a season that you could define as both good but simultaneously hard? I think that has defined 2026 for me so far. There have been many good things, but sometimes I have let the other, not-so-great things minimize the good. I hope you know what I mean.

Sometimes that duo of good and hard can come in the form of events and things, but sometimes it is in the form of people. Maybe you have one friend or family member who is really struggling in the midst of a relatively steady season of your own. As a parent, a spouse, a son or daughter, or a friend, the trials that loved one is experiencing can feel so heavy that it's hard to find joy in the midst of your own stability. And then there are the times when the emotional weight of trying to help someone else can just leave you frustrated or weary.

There are a lot of blogs that I could write on boundaries and not letting other people's feelings or circumstances affect you, which are absolutely vital to being a healthy human being, but in the space of just caring about a friend or family member who's going through a hard time, how do you stay healthy and positive as you try to encourage them?

The Lord planted this question in my heart the other day, “What if one of your assignments right now was to help pour courage into that person? Would you do that for me?”

There was something about seeing the assignment from God's perspective that shifted my heart. The shift was not to feel overly responsible that it's my job to fix something outside of my control, but it allowed me to remember that I'm an instrument of His grace and I can carry out an assignment unto the Lord with joy and not allow that to cause a personal heaviness to fall upon me.

Psalm 121 is one of my favorites. I prayed it over and over during our wilderness and still come to it regularly, but it's also a great reminder that the Lord is the helper to all the people that I care about.

“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”  Psalm 121:1-2 ESV

There is not a Bible out there that inserts my name so that it reads “My help comes from Karin.” There is not a Bible in the world that inserts your name either.

No one in your circle has their help coming from you or me, thank goodness. We don't have to bear the responsibility, but God does use us to sometimes help lift some of the weight. Sometimes that comes from just listening to them process their pain out loud both now and months later. Sometimes that comes from sharing wisdom and perspective. Sometimes that comes by directing them to someone who can provide professional help.

We get to be the hands and feet of Jesus to lots of people, but especially those people closest to us. The proximity makes their pain more palpable to us, but it is also the privilege that comes with the trust that has taken time to build. Someone in your close circle might need you right now. You aren’t called to fix it, but I encourage you to see yourself as a conduit of grace in this season, so you can be available without feeling overly responsible for the lift.