Sometimes, life can be difficult, and emotions can be so conflicting that it is hard to think. And when I take time to think, my brain and heart can feel so fraught that it’s hard to think correctly.

What do you do when your emotions are obnoxiously loud? Emotions of fear, anger, or worry?

When you get a text that makes your heart race,
hear news that brings a gush of tears to your eyes,
sense your blood boiling into a massive display of anger,
feel a sense of depressing dread that your entire life will be miserable…

What do you do?

During these moments, it is natural for me to let my emotions take over my thoughts and actions, leading me to make all sorts of decisions that my future self will most likely regret.

Instead, here are two words God uses to remind me of the next step I need to take when life feels especially difficult and my emotions are overwhelming:

Press In.

There are 3 ways we need to press in during difficult times:

Press in: to God’s character.

The truest thing you can believe about your life right now is that God is good through the very circumstances you are encountering. Yikes, that’s convicting to write.

But it’s so true and right, isn’t it? The bottom-level, unchangeable truth about your life is not that it’s hard (though maybe it is) and not that it’s painful (though that’s probably true too). The truest, most unchanging thing about your life is that you have a God who is worthy of your trust in every tiny circumstance you encounter today.

During emotional roller coasters, you must press into the truth about God’s character because your emotions will be screaming the exact opposite.

What is true about God?

He is good and only good.
“No one is good except God alone.”
(Mark 10:18)

He deserves your trust. 
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man…
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD.”
(Jeremiah 17:5-10)

He is a faithful Father.
“But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)

He is loving.
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.”
(John 15:9)

He is your ever-present friend.
“There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”
(Proverbs 18:24)

He promises to lead you.
“For your name’s sake you lead me and guide me.”
(Psalm 31:3)

In order to press into the truth about God, you have to go to the source of truth. This leads us to our next point…

Press in: to God’s Word.

Emotionally charged times are exhausting. Sometimes the idea of sitting down and thinking about God’s Word as it applies to your situation feels both tiresome and painful. But pressing into God’s Word during these times is necessary because you must regularly encounter truth to confront the lies your heart constantly pumps into your mind. Maybe you came up with a solution to your problem that seemed right at first, but when evaluated in light of God’s Word, the Spirit revealed errors in your thinking.

Applying God’s Word to your heart may feel like a painful re-breaking of an improperly set bone. The correction can be excruciating and seem like the last thing you want to do. But it’s only when God re-breaks the crooked parts of our hearts and sets them straight according to his Word that true healing can begin.

Press in: to God’s people, the church.

Many times, the seasons when we most need the body of Christ in our lives is the time we pull away from church.

You’re so overwhelmed, that the very last thing you want to do is drag yourself (& your family) out on Sunday morning.

There’s nothing else you can let go from your schedule except church, and you have to have a little alone time or you’ll go absolutely crazy.

The last thing you want is for others to know how deeply you’re struggling.

But as members of the body of Christ, we need each other too much to make a habit of missing church. As my pastor always encourages us, “You need people here who know your story and you need to know theirs.” Find someone in your church who loves God’s Word and ask them to pray with you. If that sort of thing doesn’t happen often at your church, maybe you could be the one to start the trend! It’s a beautiful thing to talk with a fellow believer about a struggle and then take a few minutes to bring that difficulty before the Lord. You need other believers in your life, and they need you.

Some of the most painful moments of my life have also been the sweetest. When I come to Jesus in the middle of my pain and confusion, the Spirit comforts me with his presence and the reminder that I have God as my Father (Romans 8:15-17). His Word and promises are real! He truly does give perfect peace when we fix our thoughts on him.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3).

Whatever season you find yourself in, I pray that God will use these words “Press In” to remind you to draw closer to the truth of his good character, his Word, and his people. He is a good, faithful Shepherd; you can trust him to lead you through every season of your life.