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Day Five: Ups and Downs

A simple fact about our spiritual journey is that we are going to have ups and downs. This is a central message of the Exodus story. If we were to skim through the whole book of Exodus in a single reading, this theme of ups and downs would jump out from the pages. On one page we read of hardship and struggle, a time of crisis and temptation. On the next page we read of victory and the people’s renewed trust in the Lord. We see the people of Israel singing songs of praise to the Lord for His power against their enemies, and yet this is soon followed by distrust and even anger that He has brought them into the wilderness to die. The theme continues: crisis and doubt, victory and trust.

We can look back over our own lives and see this cyclical motion. We know life goes in cycles. Nature shows us this, as we move from day to night, summer to fall, and so on. We have all had times when it seemed that the Lord was distant and did not care about us. Despair and distrust took over, and we found ourselves in a desert valley. And yet we can see that the desperate state did not last. The Lord came into our lives again, and the peace and comfort of heaven returned.

Life has its ups and downs, but the hells strive to convince us of a very different expectation. The hells want us to believe that life should always be perfect and easy. They try to fill us with the false notion that we should always feel close to the Lord. Then when we do come into a down time, we will feel something is wrong, and want to give up on the journey. The hells tell us, "If you are a good person, if you are truly working to come to the Lord, then you should be in a state of closeness and security in Him all the time." And sometimes we believe this. When we come into a necessary time of temptation and despair, we panic and want to give up.

Changes of state are the inevitable reality. At first this may seem discouraging. But as we come to accept that life is a journey, this can be one of the most encouraging truths we have. We can see that the difficult times are a real part of the journey, and are even allowed by the Lord as an opportunity for growth. When we are in a valley of despair, the Lord comes to us and says, "Let’s get to work and get out of this valley." We should remember that this is part of the journey that we prepared for – the manifestation of the bitter herbs.

Key Point
When the Writings for the New Church talk about "the hells," they are referring to the negative and evil influences that come from people who have chosen hell after death.

Reflection
When you are feeling frustrated and discouraged, what action can you take to move forward through these feelings?

Download this Reflection in printable form. (PDF)

Discussion Board
Share your thoughts on today's Journey in the discussion board.

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