I'm in a slump. I've hit the wall. It's that moment when everything I have been doing seems meaningless, or at the very least too much effort for such meager results. And now overwhelm has set in, and I don't know what to do anymore. I could go lie down and wait for the slump to pass but I don't even want to do that.
So what to do? Slumps happen to all of us. I have discovered one way that helps is spending some time in prayer with a focus on being thankful.
Usually we only think about being thankful when everything is going our way. But the fastest way out of a slump is thankfulness. Even if you are having the worst day ever, there is something to be thankful for. The color of the sky. The smell of coffee. The way the light filters through the leaves of the trees. When I am feeling sad about the state of my world, I try to turn my eyes toward what I can be thankful for. I can be thankful for the car I have with all it’s imperfections. I am thankful for my fuzzy kitties even though they do create hair balls from time to time. My messy family that brings me much joy. My bills are paid. I am thankful that my health is improving. My friends. My soft bed. My comfy couch. I'm thankful for Netflix. And most of all, I'm thankful for God. That I have a Father I can turn to for guidance and solace.
Amazingly, after spending some time being thankful, I usually find that whatever is bothering me is small in comparison to the huge amount of blessings that surround me right this minute. I am blessed. And I may find that I just need to step away from all the problems and concerns I have been focusing on, and discover the beauty in my life again for a few minutes, or an hour, or even a day. I can take a mini-vacation mentally to rest from my efforts. To let go all the stuff that is swirling in my mind and enter into His presence. Even Jesus would take time from the crowds and go off by himself to pray.
If I seek God during my slump, I have found He will encourage me. I will get new insights, ideas. And soon I am back into my creative flow.
Maybe slumps are just God's way of telling us to rest - to come away with HIm. Maybe they are God's way of letting us know that He is able to take our burdens and let us depend on Him. Maybe, just maybe slumps can be a good thing if they cause us to go deeper into Him.