rebelling against low expectations
“You’re going to be an adult in less than a year.” I’ll never forget the day I realized there were only a few months until I would turn eighteen. Only a few months until I would be a legal adult, which meant I needed to start acting like one. I needed to “grow up.” For some, the idea of “growing up” means freedom–you can do whatever you want, no longer under parental restraints. Personally...
2020 has been a terrible year. We’re only halfway through it, and I’ve already seen several articles, videos, and online forums label 2020 as “the worst year” of this century, of their lives, and even of all time. (Just Google “2020 is the worst year,” and you’ll see what I mean.) Based on what has already happened so far, I can see why. 2020 Unmasked This year boasts a...
When I was a young teenager, I began to fight a battle I didn’t want anyone to know about. It was a battle I didn’t talk about for a long time. A battle that I tried to fight on my own, without anyone to help me. This was a battle against depression. We don’t talk about this battle much. Many Christians would rather fall silent on it. Because depression is the type of battle we want to pretend...
I was crying and screaming. “God, where are you?! Why have you left me when I need you the most? Why have you abandoned me?” I have severe anxiety. It wakes me up at night, gives me nightmares, and when my body doesn’t know what to do with all the built-up anxiety, it shuts down and makes me pass out. The panic attacks I experience make me want to just lay down and never get up...
My summer started with all the normal things—volleyball practice, church activities, babysitting, etc. School had wormed its way in also—which I’m sure many fellow homeschoolers can relate to. There was also a job, a mission trip, and a YoungLife camp. Yes, it would be a busy summer, and I would be a little stressed. But I thought I could handle it. But then grief burst in. Three days before...
Life is hard. I’m not talking about doing hard things, I’m talking about life that’s hard. Death in the family, sickness, despair, the sin in our world that we can’t stop, but we do look to God to help us with it. But sometimes even that can be really hard. The difficulties in life can make us ask, “Why God? Why would you let this happen?” And trust me, I’ve been living with that question for a...
I never realized how much the fear of inadequacy controlled my life until recently. I’ve always been afraid– afraid of being incapable of doing a good job, and then fearing that my expectations of a “good job” weren’t high enough. Afraid of making mistakes, and then fearing of what other people might think of me when I did. Have you ever experienced this overwhelming feeling of failure and...
I was sitting at a table at our church youth camp talking with a couple of the camp counselors. One counselor was just a couple of years older than me and just starting college. As I sat there, I overheard him speaking with another student about his participation in a high school robotics competition. As he talked he began to elaborate on his accomplishments, a near perfect SAT score, athletic...
Life is hard. Although “hard” is relative and looks different for everyone, this is an inescapable truth to which we can all relate. Pain. Depression. Grief. Heartache. Anxiety. These are just a few of the things that can knock us down, hold our attention, instill fear, and test our faith. There are real reasons to hurt. We as Christians should never minimize that. But friend, there...
Let me set the scene. It’s a weekday night at Yogurtland, and I’m finishing the yummy dessert with my mom and two sisters. All of a sudden, a song I like comes on overhead, and I point it out to my mom. “Hey, it’s the song from that movie!” My mom looks at me and says, “You know, Anna, it doesn’t take much to make you happy.” Elaborating, she adds, “You have such low expectations for life and...
rebelling against low expectations
