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The Thin Place

How Can We Bear the Brokenness of the World Around Us? The One Thing That You Need to Remember to Keep Going

This week has hit with a weight that feels tangible.

My muscles ache as I sit down, tightening, like my chest to remind me of what I already know, that the world is not okay. It is shattered and splinted into a million pieces like a china cup carelessly dropped. 

I watch parents fighting, in my own home and across an ocean, against systems that seem rigged to better everyone but the child they are in place to protect. News outlets flash headlines about celebrity personalities and the ebb and flow of the stock market but sometimes, don’t you want to scream at the screen that what they are showing you isn’t the world because the world is right there, in your living room, splitting into a million pieces? 

Pieces that are crumbling in your hands and while your crumble is different than my crumble, we all feel the ache of the breaking of the hearts around the world. 

We watch children suffer at the hands of those who should protect them. 

Employable workers receive a notice and then spend months trying to convince people that they are valuable. 

Marriages battle against the cultural that pulls and lures with the instantaneous rather than the hard but holy love that builds life. 

People cry out, unable to care for the children they have and others cry, begging God to give them a child. 

There is brokenness everywhere, and some days, doesn’t it catch your breath and swell in your throat?

It weighs on my chest and pulls my heart into a knot as I breathe. 

Every fiber of my aching body calls for me to retreat into myself. Sometimes, it even tempts me, as Satan did to our Lord, with promises of what God wants for me and a nudge to put myself before the holy work God has given me. 

But brokenness, it will never be defeated by selfishness, but only through selflessness. 

I can’t carry the burden of the world. I was never created to carry that load.

But the burden of my neighbor? That I can carry. 

I can’t carry the burden of the world. I was never created to carry that load. But the burden of my neighbor? That I can carry. Click To Tweet

I can carry the burden of meal-making. I can pick someone up and give them a ride. I can’t help every single mother find stability, but I can reach out to the ones I know with a pack of diapers and cup of coffee. I can’t solve world hunger, but I can feed those at my table and invite others to join us. 

The brokenness of the world is never solved through the idea that we need to be more or do more, but with the words, Samuel uttered as a child, “Here I am, Lord.”

Here I am, in my own brokenness, ready to be used for others. 

I don’t have food for the entirety of the world, but I can offer my food for the little portion of the world you’ve given me. 

My work might not reach every child, but I can make sure that one is helped. 

Brokenness has a way of stirring us, prompting our hearts to action. But that action is often met with overwhelming at how much is wrong and how feeble my efforts seem. 

The grand problems of the world may be scary, but the grand problems of my neighborhood are not. I might be overwhelmed looking at all that is wrong in the world because there are no simple solutions. But when we look around us, there are simple acts of love that we can do in the name of Christ. 

St. Thérèse said that we can do no big things, just little things with great love. 

We can do no big things, just little things with great love. This is how we bear the broknness of the world. Click To Tweet

Maybe that’s how we combat brokenness? Not by attacking the giant mess of a world we live in, but by picking up a piece of shatter china and matching the seam. 

Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. – Hebrews 12:3, ESV

Keep the faith, and remember the one who did endure the weight of the world. We are not called to carry the burden of restoring all, but He did. And because of that, we have an assurance that He will equip us in the tasks He has laid before us. 

So today, as you bear the weight of the broken, look around. You and I were never meant to solve all the problems of the world. But, by God’s grace, we can offer a glass of water to one who is thirsty. We can be the arms that embrace someone hurting. We can be the warrior who petitions before the throne of God.

For further reading:

Being Brave

Can I Stop Pretending to be a Good Person? 

Stop Praying About It Because, Yes, You’re Called to Serve

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The Comments

  • Tami @ The Inspiration Lady
    April 26, 2018

    This post honestly made me tear up. This hit so close to home and I needed to read it today. <3 I agree, helping just one person can ease the burden. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  • Jordan
    April 27, 2018

    “What they are showing you isn’t the world because the world is right there, in your living room, splitting into a million pieces” – Amen. This is beautiful.

    Reply
  • Andrea Charles
    April 27, 2018

    The title intrigued me so I had to read this post! I love the thought you shared to make a difference where we are. That’s something that we CAN do. You broke it into a manageable task that we can feel good about. Great idea!

    Reply
  • Andrea
    April 27, 2018

    It can take so little – but it means so much

    Reply
  • Katie
    April 27, 2018

    You are so right, we can do little acts of kindness for the people around us. Sometimes I feel we so often focus on missions across the world, but we forget about those in our own backyard.

    Reply
  • Kat @ Kat charles blog
    April 27, 2018

    I often feel overwhelmed by all of the brokenness in the world, and I carry the weight on my shoulders. I love the reminder to bear our neighbor’s burdens. If each one of us does this, we can do so much good in the world.

    Reply
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Hello, I’m Bailey
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Hello, I’m Bailey

The Thin Place was born out of a season of struggle. A season where I felt stretched thin and desperately longed to see the goodness of God in the land of the living. The goodness of God showed up in unexpected ways. During that season, the spiritual disciplines laid out in Scripture, the traditions of the Church, and the reminders of His faithfulness seen in liturgial living and the feasts and seasons of the Church calendar all opened my eyes to the hope we have in Christ.

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Until I read the entire Bible last year for the Bible in Lent challenge, I had never read most of the Deuterocanonical / Apocryphal books of the Bible. When I did this, I realized that, aside from a vague notion of Maccabees from Hanukkah books, I had absolutely no idea what the rest of the books contained.
For the next few days, we're going to do a little overview of each of these books in the Bible.
But first, why aren't these books in the Protestant Bible?
Like most of the divides in the Catholic and Protestant conversation, there is a lot of nuances. Luther’s own translation of the Bible included these books although he moved them to a separate section. They were also included in the King James Bible of 1611 and the Geneva Bible even though they were viewed as apocryphal or “outside of Scripture.” It was not standard even in Protestantism to exclude these books from the Bible printing until 1825. 
Essentially, there is a lot of historical evidence that the church throughout history considered these books a part of the Bible. But earlier in the Church, we see evidence of Church leaders such as St. Polycarp, St. Clement of Rome, Origen, St. Athanasius, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine,  affirming some or all of these books as Scripture.
It's clear that historically, believers have seen these books as beneficial so I hope you'll join me in looking at them this week!
#godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
thethinplace
thethinplace
•
Follow
Until I read the entire Bible last year for the Bible in Lent challenge, I had never read most of the Deuterocanonical / Apocryphal books of the Bible. When I did this, I realized that, aside from a vague notion of Maccabees from Hanukkah books, I had absolutely no idea what the rest of the books contained. For the next few days, we're going to do a little overview of each of these books in the Bible. But first, why aren't these books in the Protestant Bible? Like most of the divides in the Catholic and Protestant conversation, there is a lot of nuances. Luther’s own translation of the Bible included these books although he moved them to a separate section. They were also included in the King James Bible of 1611 and the Geneva Bible even though they were viewed as apocryphal or “outside of Scripture.” It was not standard even in Protestantism to exclude these books from the Bible printing until 1825. Essentially, there is a lot of historical evidence that the church throughout history considered these books a part of the Bible. But earlier in the Church, we see evidence of Church leaders such as St. Polycarp, St. Clement of Rome, Origen, St. Athanasius, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine, affirming some or all of these books as Scripture. It's clear that historically, believers have seen these books as beneficial so I hope you'll join me in looking at them this week! #godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
2 days ago
View on Instagram |
1/5
I used to think that one day, the glory of the Lord, our relationship with Him in Heaven, would be so great that we wouldn’t care about the wretched pain that sin brought into our earthly lives. But that answer never quite satisfied. 
I realize now that God is not in the business of sweeping things under the rug. There isn’t going to be some cosmic brainwashing where we all wake up one day pretending the pain was never there. Redemption, transformation, and revival is what our God is about.
Christ’s dead body lying in the grave and being raised to life, still bearing the wounds of His crucifixion, that is our hope. Not that the bad things will be ignored, but that even the most egregious acts we can commit, crucifying our God, can be turned into the means of our redemption. All that was meant for evil will be purposed to the good of the Lord, not ignored by Him.
There is not going to be a cosmic gaslighting, the wounds that Thomas felt testify to this. There will be a cosmic resurrection where things that felt too awful to even think about will be redeemed and transformed by the glorious love and majesty of our Lord.
And one day we will look and say, He has done great things. And will know in our bones that it is truly true.
#godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
I used to think that one day, the glory of the Lord, our relationship with Him in Heaven, would be so great that we wouldn’t care about the wretched pain that sin brought into our earthly lives. But that answer never quite satisfied. 
I realize now that God is not in the business of sweeping things under the rug. There isn’t going to be some cosmic brainwashing where we all wake up one day pretending the pain was never there. Redemption, transformation, and revival is what our God is about.
Christ’s dead body lying in the grave and being raised to life, still bearing the wounds of His crucifixion, that is our hope. Not that the bad things will be ignored, but that even the most egregious acts we can commit, crucifying our God, can be turned into the means of our redemption. All that was meant for evil will be purposed to the good of the Lord, not ignored by Him.
There is not going to be a cosmic gaslighting, the wounds that Thomas felt testify to this. There will be a cosmic resurrection where things that felt too awful to even think about will be redeemed and transformed by the glorious love and majesty of our Lord.
And one day we will look and say, He has done great things. And will know in our bones that it is truly true.
#godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
I used to think that one day, the glory of the Lord, our relationship with Him in Heaven, would be so great that we wouldn’t care about the wretched pain that sin brought into our earthly lives. But that answer never quite satisfied. 
I realize now that God is not in the business of sweeping things under the rug. There isn’t going to be some cosmic brainwashing where we all wake up one day pretending the pain was never there. Redemption, transformation, and revival is what our God is about.
Christ’s dead body lying in the grave and being raised to life, still bearing the wounds of His crucifixion, that is our hope. Not that the bad things will be ignored, but that even the most egregious acts we can commit, crucifying our God, can be turned into the means of our redemption. All that was meant for evil will be purposed to the good of the Lord, not ignored by Him.
There is not going to be a cosmic gaslighting, the wounds that Thomas felt testify to this. There will be a cosmic resurrection where things that felt too awful to even think about will be redeemed and transformed by the glorious love and majesty of our Lord.
And one day we will look and say, He has done great things. And will know in our bones that it is truly true.
#godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
thethinplace
thethinplace
•
Follow
I used to think that one day, the glory of the Lord, our relationship with Him in Heaven, would be so great that we wouldn’t care about the wretched pain that sin brought into our earthly lives. But that answer never quite satisfied. I realize now that God is not in the business of sweeping things under the rug. There isn’t going to be some cosmic brainwashing where we all wake up one day pretending the pain was never there. Redemption, transformation, and revival is what our God is about. Christ’s dead body lying in the grave and being raised to life, still bearing the wounds of His crucifixion, that is our hope. Not that the bad things will be ignored, but that even the most egregious acts we can commit, crucifying our God, can be turned into the means of our redemption. All that was meant for evil will be purposed to the good of the Lord, not ignored by Him. There is not going to be a cosmic gaslighting, the wounds that Thomas felt testify to this. There will be a cosmic resurrection where things that felt too awful to even think about will be redeemed and transformed by the glorious love and majesty of our Lord. And one day we will look and say, He has done great things. And will know in our bones that it is truly true. #godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
2 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
2/5
I've been thinking a lot these last few months about the Prodigal Son, the in-between parts of the story that don't make the highlight reel.
Did he slip out wordlessly or was there fanfare as his leaving? Did his father cry or was he numb to the pain? 
We know the ending, we know the joyous celebration upon the son’s return, but how many moments in the in-between are we missing. The celebrations with one less seat at the table. Nights spend wondering if and where and how he was surviving.
There’s so much to unpack that we just tie up neatly with the “and he came home and all was well” bow at the end of the story. The end of the story is what endures, but the rest of the story is not insignificant. Without it, the end it confusing at best and meaningless at worst.
I used to think that one day, the glory of the Lord, our relationship with Him in Heaven, would be so great that we wouldn’t care about the wretched pain that sin brought into our earthly lives. 
But that answer never quite satisfied. 
I realize now that God is not in the business of sweeping things under the rug. There isn’t going to be some cosmic brainwashing where we all wake up one day pretending the pain was never there. Redemption, transformation, and revival is what our God is about.
Christ’s dead body lying in the grave and being raised to life, still bearing the wounds of His crucifixion, that is our hope. Not that the bad things will be ignored, but that even the most egregious acts we can commit, crucifying our God, can be turned into the means of our redemption. All that was meant for evil will be purposed to the good of the Lord, not ignored by Him.
There is not going to be a cosmic gaslighting, the wounds that Thomas felt testify to this. There will be a cosmic resurrection where things that felt too awful to even think about will be redeemed and transformed by the glorious love and majesty of our Lord.
And one day we will look and say, He has done great things. And will know in our bones that it is truly true.
#christianwoman  #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #Catholicconvert #chasingsacred #bibleverse #biblestudy  #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #prodigalson
thethinplace
thethinplace
•
Follow
I've been thinking a lot these last few months about the Prodigal Son, the in-between parts of the story that don't make the highlight reel. Did he slip out wordlessly or was there fanfare as his leaving? Did his father cry or was he numb to the pain? We know the ending, we know the joyous celebration upon the son’s return, but how many moments in the in-between are we missing. The celebrations with one less seat at the table. Nights spend wondering if and where and how he was surviving. There’s so much to unpack that we just tie up neatly with the “and he came home and all was well” bow at the end of the story. The end of the story is what endures, but the rest of the story is not insignificant. Without it, the end it confusing at best and meaningless at worst. I used to think that one day, the glory of the Lord, our relationship with Him in Heaven, would be so great that we wouldn’t care about the wretched pain that sin brought into our earthly lives. But that answer never quite satisfied. I realize now that God is not in the business of sweeping things under the rug. There isn’t going to be some cosmic brainwashing where we all wake up one day pretending the pain was never there. Redemption, transformation, and revival is what our God is about. Christ’s dead body lying in the grave and being raised to life, still bearing the wounds of His crucifixion, that is our hope. Not that the bad things will be ignored, but that even the most egregious acts we can commit, crucifying our God, can be turned into the means of our redemption. All that was meant for evil will be purposed to the good of the Lord, not ignored by Him. There is not going to be a cosmic gaslighting, the wounds that Thomas felt testify to this. There will be a cosmic resurrection where things that felt too awful to even think about will be redeemed and transformed by the glorious love and majesty of our Lord. And one day we will look and say, He has done great things. And will know in our bones that it is truly true. #christianwoman #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #Catholicconvert #chasingsacred #bibleverse #biblestudy #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #prodigalson
2 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
3/5
This is a gut-check. A major gut-check. 
"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." - James 1:27
Is that how I live my faith?
No. I can say without any hesitation, that I am not known for widow or orphan care. Even when I advocate for the vulnerable and marginalized, it is in a vague, general way. 
Not in a specific way. For specific people. Like the God who loves specifically me and not just a vague idea of a person. 
Lord, have mercy. Convict us and move us to action. Make us more like You.
#christianwoman #graceupongrace #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #womenlivingwell #jesuscalling #faithfilledcaptions #catholicblogger #Catholicconvert #CatholicWoman #chasingsacred #christianwomenleaders #bibleverse #biblestudy  #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #faithful #Godisgood #encouragementgallery #godslove #christianposts #christianquote #prayer #prayertime #miblogger #michiganblogger
thethinplace
thethinplace
•
Follow
This is a gut-check. A major gut-check. "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." - James 1:27 Is that how I live my faith? No. I can say without any hesitation, that I am not known for widow or orphan care. Even when I advocate for the vulnerable and marginalized, it is in a vague, general way. Not in a specific way. For specific people. Like the God who loves specifically me and not just a vague idea of a person. Lord, have mercy. Convict us and move us to action. Make us more like You. #christianwoman #graceupongrace #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #womenlivingwell #jesuscalling #faithfilledcaptions #catholicblogger #Catholicconvert #CatholicWoman #chasingsacred #christianwomenleaders #bibleverse #biblestudy #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #faithful #Godisgood #encouragementgallery #godslove #christianposts #christianquote #prayer #prayertime #miblogger #michiganblogger
4 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
4/5
Too much of my life has been focused on God’s judgment, on trying to learn, trying to understand, trying to justify myself through knowledge and proper theology. Divine Mercy Sunday points me back to the lavish mercy of God. Mercy that is greater than my wildest dreams. Mercy beyond what my human mind can imagine. Mercy that is truly Divine.⁣
⁣
Read more on the mercy of God. Latest post on the blog. Link in Bio⁣
⁣
#christianblogger #givemejesus #christianliving #christianblog #graceupongrace #christianwomen #bedeeplyrooted #shereadstruth #lampandlight #womenintheword #proverbs31 #goodnewsfeed #soulscripts #christiancreative #womenoffaith #solovelysofree #lifelivedbeautifully #solovelysofree #belovedlife #jesussaves #soworthloving
thethinplace
thethinplace
•
Follow
Too much of my life has been focused on God’s judgment, on trying to learn, trying to understand, trying to justify myself through knowledge and proper theology. Divine Mercy Sunday points me back to the lavish mercy of God. Mercy that is greater than my wildest dreams. Mercy beyond what my human mind can imagine. Mercy that is truly Divine.⁣ ⁣ Read more on the mercy of God. Latest post on the blog. Link in Bio⁣ ⁣ #christianblogger #givemejesus #christianliving #christianblog #graceupongrace #christianwomen #bedeeplyrooted #shereadstruth #lampandlight #womenintheword #proverbs31 #goodnewsfeed #soulscripts #christiancreative #womenoffaith #solovelysofree #lifelivedbeautifully #solovelysofree #belovedlife #jesussaves #soworthloving
4 weeks ago
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5/5
@thethinplace
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