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weary, Overwhelmed, Anxiety, Spiritual Growth, Christian walk, Waiting Dana Rongione weary, Overwhelmed, Anxiety, Spiritual Growth, Christian walk, Waiting Dana Rongione

Choked by the Yoke

All my life, I've been a tortoise.

I'm slow. When I do something, I do it carefully, methodically, and with extreme attention to detail. I'm not fast at anything, and I never have been. In middle school, I earned the nickname "Dead Stop." A teacher gave me that one. (Nothing says "bless your heart" like a faculty-approved nickname.)

But a strange thing happens when my schedule fills up and the demands start stacking like dirty dishes. Suddenly, I think I'm a hare. My body is still a tortoise, and my mindset is still slow and steady. Yet I feel I must zip around like the Road Runner, because surely that's the only way everything will get done. Beep beep!

On those mornings, my prayer goes something like this:

"Lord, I have so much to do today, but I know I don't have to do it alone. You are my strength. My times are in Your hands.

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Life's Journey, Weary, Spiritual Warfare, Overwhelmed, Encouragement, Hope Dana Rongione Life's Journey, Weary, Spiritual Warfare, Overwhelmed, Encouragement, Hope Dana Rongione

Is the Christian Life Supposed To Be This Hard?

I'll admit something. For years, I pictured the Christian race as a Sunday-afternoon jog. I saw myself in cute sneakers with a gentle breeze in my hair, waving at the neighbors and admiring the scenery. "It's a marathon, not a sprint," I'd say, as if a marathon were just a sprint with better snacks.

Then I looked up the Greek word for "race" in Hebrews 12:1, and my smoothie hit the pavement.

The word is agōn, and yes, it's where we get "agony." It was the word for the contests held in the great stadiums, where athletes strained, gasped, and gave everything they had. The word carries the idea of struggle and conflict. Nobody in that arena was admiring the scenery.

We love the race verse. We put it on mugs and bookmarks. But we rarely talk about what it's like to run it on mile nineteen, with a blister, a headache, and a to-do list that's grown legs.

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the Bible, God's Word, the Word of God, Doubt, Confidence Dana Rongione the Bible, God's Word, the Word of God, Doubt, Confidence Dana Rongione

Has Science Disproved the Bible?

Have you ever noticed how confident people sound right before they are proven wrong?

Sadly, many people (Christians included) have a habit of nodding along when someone says, "Scientific evidence disproves many portions of the Bible." After all, it sounds so official. Somebody with a doctorate, a documentary, and a dramatic voice has assured us that science is right and the Bible is wrong.  And the “simple-minded” folks (like me) who still believe the Bible is completely true are merely behind the times and haven’t yet caught up with the scientific advancements.  

Really?  That’s not how I see it.  In fact, I believe the opposite, based on the following historical evidence.

Let’s start with a group of people called the Hittites. For a long time, the Hittites were a scholarly punchline.

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Comfort, peace, Anxiety, Worry, Rise Up and Build, Encouragement Dana Rongione Comfort, peace, Anxiety, Worry, Rise Up and Build, Encouragement Dana Rongione

What To Do With Your 2 a.m. Worries

For the most part, I’m a morning person.  I don’t enjoy getting up super early these days, especially as the dark night seems to stretch on until well after 8:00. But overall, I function better in the mornings.  My body aches less.  My brain feels more alert. My motivation and discipline seem to be higher. Yes, give me the mornings, and I can get things accomplished.

That being said, by about 2:00 in the afternoon, I’m crashing, and by 6:00, I’m of no use to anyone!  Yes, by 6:00, I have to walk away from the desk, the housework, and any other demands on my mind and body, and start winding down for the night.

So, my real struggle isn't the mornings or even the afternoons. It's the nights.

You know the kind of nights I mean. The house finally goes quiet. Everyone else is asleep.

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Faith, Trust, Provision, God's faithfulness, anxiety Dana Rongione Faith, Trust, Provision, God's faithfulness, anxiety Dana Rongione

Can You Add That To My Cart, Lord?

This morning, Jason was baking scones (which has become a normal weekday activity in our house). When the oven timer buzzed on the Alexa app, he peeked at his golden-brown goodies and hollered, "Alexa, add two more minutes."

Now, under normal circumstances, Alexa is a fairly obedient little assistant. She usually chirps back with something like, "Two minutes added to the timer." Simple. Done. Exactly what he needed.

But this morning, Alexa apparently woke up as tired and foggy as I felt, because her response was, "I've added two minutes to the shopping list."

I'm sorry, what? You can't buy two minutes at the shop, Alexa! Believe me, if you could, I'd have a standing order.

Jason tried again. Same confused response. It took three attempts before Alexa finally caught on and actually added the time to the timer instead of the shopping list.

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