The other day, I was in the midst of a phone call with one of my dearest friends who I process through just about everything with. We were talking about 2020 and all that has happened and the state of our nation and the RAMPANT skepticism amongst many people regarding just about everything… ya know, just some light topics of conversation. ; )
But it was in the midst of my call with my friend that I realized something… this general skepticism and looming fear that has plagued so many people of what might happen is preventing so many from living a life full of deep, genuine love & joy.
What exactly do I mean by this?
To start: Love assumes the best.
And I believe that in the midst of so much uncertainty, so much fear, so much craziness, skepticism has served as a defense mechanism to prevent real, true love, feeling and connection. What one may see as a person who is quick to assume the worst or see what could go wrong, I see as a person who is hurting. A person who is longing for joy but who is fearful that if she lets herself get excited & hopeful & maybe even just a bit happy, that everything might go wrong.
To love people is to look for the good in them, despite all they have done wrong or all that they may do wrong. Honestly, love really makes no freakin’ sense at all to the human brain… why would I love someone who has hurt me & harmed me & never made amends or who broke trust and hasn’t reestablished it?!
But love isn’t really logical. When I look at the life of Jesus, I see a man who was absolutely perfect in every way and who could’ve stayed up in Heaven living the dream. But ya know what he did? He spent time living amongst imperfect people and was hurt & harmed & beaten. Hate was spewed at him. The government & the times were a mess (hello, 2020). But he remained hopeful in humanity & loved us all anyways. He still chose to look for the good in everyone around him. He didn’t let the fear of others possibly continuing to do harm keep him from loving them so deeply that he died for them.
The removal of skepticism is what frees our hearts to hope. To love deeply. To seek the good in others. To not let my fear of being hurt or experiencing heartbreak or pain hold me back from FULLY experiencing the absolutely amazing moments of life, and the hard ones in between.
[ Now, I want to be clear: if you have experienced a breakdown in trust with a person or situation and it is not safe nor possible to reengage with the person or situation, protect yourself & your heart. Assuming the best in someone does not mean allowing them into every part of your life. Remaining hopeful does not mean disregarding patterns of behavior that are unhealthy. You can remain hopeful and look for the good in someone from afar. <3 ]
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When you’re skeptical, it’s like a shield is blocking your heart from all that comes its way. Yes, you may be guarded from some hard things, but you’re also guarded from all the incredibly good things, too.
It is in the moment of releasing the shield of being a skeptic that all the joy & happiness & love & hard & sweet & sad & pain can come through. To live fully is to feel fully. To live fully is to love fully… to see the good in others & situations & circumstances even when the world says otherwise.
Let yourself be a person who looks for the good. Who hopes. Who assumes the best. There are going to be hard moments & seasons & circumstances, but thank goodness, we get to put our trust in something bigger than anything the world could throw our way.
xx
Always,
Elle