happy

Draw Near

Sometimes, the weight of life can be hidden. Stored deeply in the recesses of our hearts, tucked quietly between the to-do list and the mundane. But then there are days, hurt cannot help but show itself.

Much like the day my eight-year-old’s little voice spoke into my own hurt, “Mommy, your heart looks sad.” And all I could offer in return was, “It is a little sad but I will be okay.” An admission she answered by climbing up onto my lap, circling her arms around me and saying, “Mommy, I am going to hug you all the way to a happy heart.”

In that moment, her tender words washed over me with such profound grace, bringing me gently to the heart of the Father. A Father who will bend close, draw near, and offer His care without reservation--holding us all the way to a happy heart.

While life will inevitably bring seasons of sadness and pain, we have an unchanging Father who does not shame us for our sadness. Instead, He sits with us, holds us, binds up our broken. But His love does not end solely in comfort. His love also brings us hope. A hope so real, so profound, so steady it turns broken into mended, darkness into light, sad into happy every single time.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalm 34:18, NIV