🌸MOMENT Reflection | Start Where You Are

📖 Scripture

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”
— Psalm 34:18

🌸 MOMENT Reflection

Start Where You Are

Sometimes life changes before we are ready for it.

Someone we love dies. A relationship changes. A job ends. A child grows up and needs us differently. Our health, responsibilities, family, finances or plans take a turn we did not expect.

And suddenly, here we are.

That is when the words “begin again” can start to feel different.

They sound hopeful. And they can be.

But telling someone to begin again can feel like a lot when they are still trying to understand what just happened.

A woman who has lost her husband may not be thinking about her “next chapter.” She may be wondering how she is supposed to walk into the house without him.

Someone grieving a parent may be discovering that it does not matter how old you are—you can still feel the absence of being someone's child.

A caregiver whose life has revolved around someone else's needs may not even know what she needs anymore.

And sometimes there has been no major tragedy at all. You just know something has changed.

So maybe beginning again does not always start with a plan.

Maybe it starts with telling the truth about where you are.

God, I am tired.

God, I miss them.

God, I thought my life would look different.

God, I do not know what to do next.

God, I am grateful...and I am still hurting.

Those prayers count too.

Psalm 34:18 does not say God is near only after the brokenhearted have recovered. It says He is near to the brokenhearted.

Right there.

In the middle of it.

I think sometimes we put pressure on ourselves to turn difficult experiences into lessons too quickly. We start looking for the testimony before we have even had time to acknowledge the pain.

But God does not need us to rush.

There are seasons when faith looks like moving forward.

And there are seasons when faith looks like getting out of bed, doing what needs to be done, whispering a prayer and trusting God with the rest of the day.

That is still faith.

Maybe you are standing at the beginning of something you did not choose.

You do not have to erase what came before.

You do not have to know where this is going.

And you certainly do not have to pretend that you are ready when you are not.

Start where you are.

Because you are not starting from nothing.

You are starting from here.

And God is here too.

Take a MOMENT

Before you think about what comes next, ask yourself:

Where am I—really—right now?

What has changed?

What am I carrying?

What do I miss?

What am I afraid to say out loud?

And what do I need from God today—not next month, not next year, but today?

A Prayer

Lord,

You know exactly where I am.

You know what has changed, what I am carrying, what I miss and what I still do not understand.

Help me not to rush myself just because the world keeps moving.

Meet me here.

Give me what I need for today, and when it is time to take another step, help me take it with You.

Amen.

MOMENT: You do not have to be ready for a new beginning to begin.
You are not starting from nothing. You are starting from here.

Pause. Pray. Be honest. Begin.

❤️ Every MOMENT Matters.

— Monica Lynne Wilkins
MOMENT Moms™
MOMENTMoms.org