For the Body

This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! — Ezekiel 37:5

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To breathe is brave.
Never underestimate the power of an exhale.

There will be some nights
where you will look up and lose track of all the stars you see,
and there will be some nights
you can’t lift your head,
but in both
of those nights
and every other
night in between,
you are strongest
when you take
the time to breathe.

It takes courage
to live through heartbreak. Breathing is no small feat.

When you find yourself falling into the pit of anxiety, remember the ladder of hope that reminds you there is no reason to be afraid. There is still a way out of this, and you are still capable — not perfect, but capable — and you have permission to try to climb again. Even if your hands shake, and your knees are weaker from the fall, you can still trade your fears of tomorrow with hope for today: the courageous decision to climb on anyway out of the pit of anxious thoughts.

There is no reason to live afraid.

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There will be times when the last thing you want to do
is hear

that you have
to keep going.
The last thing
you will want to do is feel

you have to keep pushing.

Let the breaths leaving your body second by second remind you

how seconds soon turn into minutes, and these minutes soon turn into hours and hours

then turn into days
and even though you once thought
you were stagnant,
you have made it
a miraculously long way through the darkness.

Excerpted with permission from All Along You Were Blooming by Morgan Harper Nichols, copyright Morgan Harper Nichols.

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Your Turn

The Lord gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace. — Psalm 29:11

Breathe. Climb the ladder of hope. No need to live afraid! Jesus came to give us life, and hope, and His peace! Come share your thoughts on Morgan’s poetry. We want to hear from you! ~ Devotionals Daily