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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Oh, yeah.
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02:30Oh, yeah.
03:00Good morning, Essence family.
03:12This is Sarah Jakes Roberts, and I have this incredible opportunity to be a part of this
03:19summit that I believe is going to help so many of us on this journey of really maintaining
03:24our health and wellness in light of the current conditions of the world.
03:29Obviously, over the last few weeks, we've really been changed drastically by the way that we
03:38function and connect as a result of the pandemic that is COVID-19.
03:42And one of the things that I noticed kind of instantly the first time that I left the house
03:49after everything had been shut down was just how clear the air was.
03:56And as we were driving through our city of Los Angeles, my husband and I and our family,
04:01we live in Los Angeles.
04:03As I was driving through the city, I just kept telling my husband and like, wow, it's so clear.
04:07Like we can literally see the tops of the mountains and I kept getting struck by the traffic was flowing.
04:15If you've ever been to Los Angeles or you live in Los Angeles, you know, the one on one and the four
04:20five constantly congested, but we were flowing so freely.
04:26And I really feel like in the midst of obviously what is a challenging disease and pandemic for
04:33us to wrap our mind around that there have been these unexpected silver linings.
04:38If you're like me and you try to find the good in whatever you're in, there have been little
04:44things along the way, how we are more intentional about connecting, maybe spending time with our
04:50families or even going out on walks.
04:54All of these silver linings connected to a challenging season.
05:00As I was thinking about silver linings, I decided to do a little bit of research about, you know,
05:06just where this notion of silver linings came from in the first place.
05:10And I was reading and I forgot that what makes that state that statement silver lining so powerful is
05:18the first part of it that we don't always bring up.
05:21And that's every cloud has a silver lining.
05:24So there's this juxtaposition of silver linings, but also clouds.
05:30And if I'm honest from day to day, I feel like that's where I'm living somewhere
05:34between the silver lining and the cloud of how this has changed our life in our society.
05:41There are moments where I am so thankful to have the extra time to think and create and connect.
05:47That's what I'm living in the silver lining.
05:50But then there are these moments where I'm worried and concerned, and I don't know how long this is
05:56going to last.
05:57And I've eaten all of the snacks and I'm going to sit around and just be thick this summer.
06:04Okay.
06:05And that's when I'm living under the cloud.
06:07I had a friend whose mom was diagnosed and passed so suddenly after, you know, contracting this disease.
06:15And that's a cloud.
06:17So they asked me to speak today about having faith and to give a message of hope.
06:23And I wanted to connect with you all to let you know that there are these inevitables of life,
06:30whether we're living in a pandemic or just going about our day to day lives,
06:36where we have moments of silver linings, and then we have moments of living under a cloud.
06:43And I want to talk very briefly about those who are experiencing those from day to day,
06:49because sometimes we can feel guilty for living in either of those truths, right?
06:55If we're living in those silver linings, are we also discrediting the struggle that our healthcare
07:01workers are going through that our, you know, grocery clerks and essential employees are experiencing
07:09because we found a way to enjoy something that has been challenging for them.
07:13But when we're living in the cloud and the darkness and the worry,
07:17then we have that guilt and maybe not being fully present with our families.
07:22You're watching today.
07:23And I just want to encourage you and maybe comfort you and knowing that there's nothing wrong with
07:30living in a silver lining and also living underneath the cloud.
07:34As a matter of fact, we can't have a silver lining unless we have clouds.
07:39And I was studying last night just for our time together today.
07:43And I wanted to learn more about how God uses clouds and
07:47times within the Bible where I saw God intentionally use clouds.
07:52And I was drawn to Exodus when the children of Israel are leaving Egyptian rule and they're
08:01walking their way towards the promised land. And just very quickly, I want to share this scripture
08:06with you guys because I think it's going to be helpful as we really dig into this season.
08:12It says, and the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way
08:18and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light so as to go by day and night.
08:24He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.
08:30So he kept this cloud over them as they were headed towards the promised land.
08:35And it just made me realize that God uses cloudy days.
08:40Sometimes we think the only time that we can experience faith, the only time that we can have
08:45hope and optimism is when everything is going the way that we planned, when everything is aligning
08:50the way that we had hoped. But the truth is that perhaps God is even most powerful in leading and
08:57guiding us, not when we know where we're going, but when we have surrendered and succumbed to the reality
09:03of I'm living in a cloudy day. Faith does not mean that you have to ignore how you're feeling.
09:09It doesn't mean that you have to pretend that you're okay when you're not. Faith is ultimately
09:14about trust that even when I can't see what I hoped I would see in this moment, I trust that there is
09:21guidance happening in the midst of this cloudy day. And I love this text so much because it reminded me
09:28about how God can use and guide us in cloudy days. So you're here and you're wondering how can I have
09:35faith in these cloudy days when one minute I have a silver lining and the other times it feels dark,
09:41like there's just thunder ready to roar over my life. Because the truth is we have this pandemic,
09:47but then we also still have life happening, right? We still have family relationships that are changing.
09:53We still have personal issues that we're navigating and having to overcome. And so at any given moment,
10:01we could be hopeful and optimistic. And then the next week you'd be living in a challenging season.
10:06And I want to share with you just three things very quickly that I think can be helpful and useful to
10:12you in maintaining faith, right? So the first one is staying present. Staying present means that you're
10:19going to need to live fully in these moments, even though it's not easy. So sometimes we can just focus
10:26so much on, I'm coming out of this. I'm going to be on the other side. I'm going to just overcome
10:32that we don't live fully in the moment. And I think the best way to maintain our emotional and
10:38spiritual and mental health in this season is to be honest about how we're feeling and staying
10:44present. How are you doing today? Not how are you going to be doing, not what's going to happen,
10:50but how are you feeling presently in this moment? This moment is carrying a version and dimension of
10:55you that you haven't been introduced to yet. If you are so intent in breathing past it and moving past it,
11:02you may never get to know how you handle yourself in different seasons of life. And if you don't
11:07know how to take care of yourself in different seasons of life, then no relationship, whether
11:11it's the relationship you have with God or with others, it's going to be able to serve you in moments
11:17where you're feeling perhaps cloudy. You're going to want to look back and be able to make an account
11:23for how you felt. How did I feel last time I was in a situation like this? So that you can also see how
11:28I came out of it. So as you focus in and hone in, you're going to be able to understand who you are
11:34in different seasons of life. You'll know that I tend to get a little low. I tend to get a little
11:39worried. I have to work out. It's better for me mentally. I want you to stay present in this season
11:44and really get to connect with yourself so that you can learn who you are from season to season.
11:49This is one of the things that has really, really been helping to balance like those cloudy
11:54moments, right? For me is I've been able to, number two, acknowledge and give gratitude for
12:00what hasn't changed. There are things that I do throughout the day that I would have been doing
12:05regardless of whether or not we were in a pandemic or not. Sometimes we can think so much about how
12:11life has changed, about what we aren't able to do anymore, how we aren't able to function the way
12:16that we used to, that we miss out on seeing how things haven't changed, right? So I opened my eyes
12:22this morning. I would have done that whether or not we were in a pandemic. I brushed my teeth. I
12:26would have done that whether or not we were in a pandemic or not. Take a moment and give gratitude
12:30for the things that haven't changed. And if you're like me, I think you're going to see that there are
12:35things in our lives that have stayed consistent more than there are things that have drastically
12:40changed, right? And so in the midst of it all, whether you're a hospital worker or you're at home with
12:46the kids, make sure that you take a moment and say, at least this part of my life has remained
12:51consistent. And those things are going to remind you of faith staying consistent, hope staying
12:57consistent. There are some consistencies in the midst of the change. And we got to know that because it
13:03helps us to stay anchored and established. And the last thing is to actively take time to see
13:10outside of yourself. I was walking with my 10 year old and I realized I've been so consumed with how
13:17I'm experiencing this that I haven't asked her how she's navigating this process. What do you think
13:22about this? My daughter's four and she gave her baby doll a bath yesterday because she said she
13:27had coronavirus. And I was like, what? I don't know if the bath is going to take away the coronavirus
13:33that your baby doll has, but let's talk about this coronavirus. And what does this look like from
13:37the eyes of a four year old? How is my husband handling this? His life has changed. Our children's
13:43lives have changed. Our grocery store clerk, I was in the grocery store yesterday and said,
13:47thank you for what you guys are doing. I know it's been a lot. Make sure that you also realize
13:51that this is happening to everyone. It's not just happening to you. And sometimes we can't change
13:56what's happening, but taking the extra step to see things from another person's perspective.
14:02One helps us remember that we aren't in it alone, but also helps us to become servants in this world.
14:07And when we live to serve those around us and to not just be inundated with how we feel,
14:13we see the world become a better place. Those are three things that I am doing that
14:17are helping me maintain my faith and to have hope in this season. But I think the primary thing that
14:24I want you to remember in our time together is how God uses cloudy days to remember that you don't
14:31have to feel guilty for whatever you're feeling in any given moment, but to know that you're still
14:36progressing. You're still moving forward. Even in the midst of those cloudy days, you're not stuck.
14:42You are not in it by yourself. And we're going to look up and we're going to be beyond this. We're
14:47going to be better as a society and a culture. I believe that with all of my heart. And if you
14:52don't believe it, that the culture is going to be better. I think you got to start with yourself.
14:57I'm going to be better. I'm going to be more intentional. I'm going to be more disciplined,
15:01more focused, set your goals, set your intentions and begin to work towards that and know that when
15:06you have down days, when you have days that you're struggling, that it doesn't mean that you're
15:10not progressing. It doesn't mean that you're not moving forward. It means that you're human,
15:15that you have feelings, that you have emotions. And sometimes when we can't see our way,
15:20we have to trust that God is still using those cloudy days. I'm Sarah Jakes Roberts. You can find
15:26me on Instagram at Sarah Jakes Roberts or on the Facebooks. I love you guys. I'm praying. God,
15:32be with them, protect them, guide them, remind them that they're never in this thing on their own
15:37and that together we'll be stronger than we were before.
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