Welcome back to the third season of the Take Heart Podcast. As we kick off this new season, we wanted to start by going back to the beginning of how Take Heart came to be, and share with you the reason we do this work, and the importance of our name Take Heart.
Today, Sara is transparent in this episode as she tells us the significance behind the name Take Heart and how Psalm 27:14 has both comforted and convicted her.
Sep 20, 2022; Ep. #99
Show Links:
Show Takeaways:
If you enjoyed our podcast, please...
Find Sara at www.saraclime.com or on Instagram @saraclime
Welcome back to the third season of the Take Heart Podcast. As we kick off this new season, we wanted to start by going back to the beginning of how Take Heart came to be, and share with you the reason we do this work, and the importance of our name Take Heart.
Today, Sara is transparent in this episode as she tells us the significance behind the name Take Heart and how Psalm 27:14 has both comforted and convicted her.
Sep 20, 2022; Ep. #99
Show Links:
Show Takeaways:
If you enjoyed our podcast, please...
Find Sara at www.saraclime.com or on Instagram @saraclime
Sara Clime 0:00
Welcome to Season 3 of Take Heart. We have exciting things planned this season, so don't miss an episode. Our 100th episode is coming up next week on Tuesday, September 27, and we're celebrating with an amazing giveaway. Make sure to go to our social media pages for the details and to register. Our Instagram handle is @takeheartspecialmoms. There are also links in our show notes. Hi, and welcome to season three of Take Heart. It's Sara Clime, and as we kick off this season, we wanted to share how we started and the significance of our name Take Heart.
[1:02] So I'm gonna be real here. I don't think the expression "take heart" is always positive. When someone takes something to heart that can be good or bad. For instance, I have had people close to me say wonderful things about me that I have taken to heart and it has been uplifting and life-giving. In fact, I can think of one particular person in my life that changed the course of my professional career, because they had said something inspiring about a skill set, I had yet to fully acknowledge. On the other hand, I had someone close to me say some hateful things to me - intended to hurt - that I, unfortunately, took to heart for way too long. I, along with a couple of people in my life that I trust and my therapist, spent a lot of time and energy dissecting those words trying to understand why they impacted me as they did. The bottom line I have taken away over the years is this. I am now extremely careful and abundantly picky with what I take to heart. I believe the expression "take heart" is to be used as an encouragement only. Anything else is not worth our effort. To take heart means to gain courage or competence. Merriam Webster actually defines the phrase "take heart" as "to begin to feel better and more hopeful and take heart things will get better soon." Now that's a definition I can get behind.
[2:24] The phrase "take heart" is found several times in the Bible. A few of my favorite verses are in the Psalms. Psalm 27"14 says, "Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." I love the NASB version. It says, "Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord." This verse has both comforted and convicted me it reminds me that I need to let my heart take courage. We often feel that courage should be natural, and if we feel fear, defeat, discouragement, bitterness, or any other vast negative emotions that this life lends us then we aren't good moms, wives, friends, advocates, or whatever, fill in the blank. But that just isn't the case. This verse reminds us that we are to wait on the Lord. And as we do, be strong and let our heart take courage. Notice that the verse says wait twice. The NASB version actually says, "Yes, wait," which I find funny for some reason. I read it as "Yes, Sara, you read that right, wait for the Lord."
[3:34] Let's be honest, though, waiting is not easy. In fact, for me, waiting can be the most difficult thing as a mom of a child with disabilities and a progressive diagnosis. Waiting seems like our biggest adversary. Time doesn't seem to be on our side, and waiting often tries to steal our peace of mind, our joy, and our hope. But it is in the waiting that the biggest growth happens. It is in the waiting that I often question God. How I question him though, is what either hinders or multiplies my growth. As I wait on the Lord, I can question God, thinking that he isn't in control and be impatient as to why he isn't answering my prayers in the way that I see fit, or I can question God, asking him what he is trying to teach me. What is he trying to make new in me that requires this time of discovery, this time of waiting? Am I strong enough to find peace in the difficult moments of waiting? Am I courageous enough to trust God's control? So I don't think questioning God is wrong. He doesn't want mindless robots. It's how we listen and whether we are strong enough to ask the right questions that are important. Are we going to be courageous enough to trust God's answers? Even more, will we be correct Just enough to trust when he's quiet? In all honesty, I continue to struggle with this at times. My heart isn't angry like I once was. Over the past 10 years since my son was diagnosed, my son, my family, and I have found peace, joy, hope, and purpose through all of this. With that said, there are still moments of fear. I am still a mom that fears a future on this earth without my child in it, barring an accident and without a cure, I will outlive my child. That scares me like nothing else. I hurt. I'm still a mom that sees my son live a life so different than his peers. I despair, I'm still a caregiver that is utterly exhausted from always feeling the need to be 10 steps ahead of the next school meeting, clinical trials, prescription refills, equipment repairs, financial woes, middle-of-the-night needs, marriage, being a mom to the other children, etc, etc. We could go on and on. That's just it, though we are human, we will always struggle with our human emotions and needs. That is why God is in control. If we remember, we can take heart and find courage and be hopeful, things will be better. As we wait on the Lord, we can ask God to help us work on renewing ourselves and making us who he knows we can be.
[6:25] Another verse in the Psalms that I love is Psalm 31:24, which says, "Be strong and take heart, all you hope in the Lord." Again, this is an action. Hope is a verb. It isn't something that happens to us. It isn't something that just happens to those who happen to be hopeful people. I've mentioned in past episodes that I'm a pretty pragmatic and analytical person. Those personality traits don't always lend themselves to unicorns and rainbows, smiles, kittens, and everything is coming up roses, kind of personality traits. Sarcasm is my second language, and my family knows when mom is in dire need of being alone to reset. But this verse, "Be strong and take heart all you who hope in the Lord," reminds me though, that I don't have to be a hopeful person. I can use hope as a verb, I can hope in the Lord. It's not up to me to hope. I can hope in the Lord. That's the key. I can be strong and take heart because I can hope in the Lord, I can count on his control and his goodness. Hope is not in my strength, it's in God's, and that's the best news. It's the same concept for me when I think of Psalm 69:32. The Christian Standard Bible Version says, "The humble will seek it and rejoice. You who seek God, take heart." Again, it's an action. If you seek God, you take heart, gain courage, take hope, and find confidence. Those are all verbs. Those are all actions. The most profound takeaway from the encouragement of the expression "take heart" is not that it is about who we are supposed to be. We are not supposed to simply be confident or be hopeful or be courageous. Is there such a thing as automatic or assured confidence? I don't believe so. Maybe it's my overly analytical mind at work. I don't think something like competence or hope, or trust simply happens because that is part of our makeup or character. I think confidence, trust, hope, and courage takes work and practice, and patience. The more we work at taking courage and gaining confidence and finding hope and practicing patience, we begin to feel better and become who God has called us to be.
[8:44] I'd like to leave you with a few simple practices to try this week. Whether I am struggling or not, I find reflecting and resetting my mind helps me refocus on who is in control. I hope these practices serve you, as they do me. The first is this. What are three wonderful things in your life that bring you hope? Write them down and focus on those for one day this week, for one 24-hour period, set aside the negative and focus on the positive, even if it's just those three things. Even if it's just one, that's fine. This takes courage and patience, though. Keep at it. Throughout the day, when a negative thought surfaces, tell yourself surely I can be positive or mostly positive for 24 hours. I'll try my hardest to not give negativity space today. You'll be pleasantly surprised how hope grows when given time to take root. A little disclaimer: if you're struggling with hope and you cannot think of one thing. It's okay. I've been there and I truly have. Please know that this does not mean that hope doesn't exist. It doesn't mean that you aren't grateful for what God has given you, it does not mean that there isn't something to be hopeful for. It just means that hope is hidden at the moment, so bring it into the light, and try the simple prayer. God, I am struggling to find hope. I asked for strength so that I may take heart and hope in you.
[10:21] The second exercise is this: give yourself permission to not have it all figured out. It's healthy to have realistic expectations of ourselves and our capabilities. I am not a medical professional. I don't know everything there is to know about everything my son needs. I don't, even after a decade of this journey with his diagnosis, I don't know everything I never will. That's okay. It's okay to not be okay with it all the time. Ask God to fill those empty spaces within and take heart that God is in control and he has it all figured out. That is what is the most important, and he will equip you for what he has called you to.
[11:14] The third exercise is this. Be patient with yourself. Take heart that God will meet you, wherever you are, even if that is in the midst of anger, or confusion, and even if that is towards God. Friend of God can see me through my thoughts and feelings towards him, he will meet you right where you are without judgment and with love. Trust him and take courage that he loves you right now, right in the space that you are in.