- 20 hours ago
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Oh, yeah.
00:30Good morning, Essence family.
00:40This is Sarah Jakes Roberts, and I have this incredible opportunity to be a part of this
00:47summit that I believe is going to help so many of us on this journey of really maintaining
00:52our health and wellness in light of the current conditions of the world.
00:58Obviously, over the last few weeks, we've really been changed drastically by the way that we
01:06function and connect as a result of the pandemic that is COVID-19.
01:12And one of the things that I noticed kind of instantly the first time that I left the house
01:17after everything had been shut down was just how clear the air was.
01:24And as we were driving through our city of Los Angeles, my husband and I and our family,
01:29we live in Los Angeles.
01:31As I was driving through the city, I just kept telling my husband, I'm like, wow, it's so
01:35clear.
01:35Like we can literally see the tops of the mountains.
01:39And I kept getting struck by the traffic was flowing.
01:43If you've ever been to Los Angeles or you live in Los Angeles, you know, the 101 and the 405
01:49of constantly congested, but we were flowing so freely.
01:54And I really feel like in the midst of obviously what is a challenging disease and pandemic for
02:01us to wrap our mind around that there have been these unexpected silver linings.
02:06If you're like me and you try to find the good in whatever you're in, there have been little
02:12things along the way, how we are more intentional about connecting, maybe spending time with
02:18our families or even going out on walks, all of these silver linings connected to a challenging
02:26season.
02:27And as I was thinking about silver linings, I decided to do a little bit of research about,
02:33you know, just where this notion of silver linings came from in the first place.
02:38And I was reading and I forgot that what makes that statement silver linings so powerful is
02:46the first part of it that we don't always bring up and that's every cloud has a silver lining.
02:52So there's this juxtaposition of silver linings, but also clouds.
02:58And if I'm honest from day to day, I feel like that's where I'm living somewhere between
03:03the silver lining and the cloud of how this has changed our life and our society.
03:08There are moments where I am so thankful to have the extra time to think and create and
03:15connect.
03:16That's what I'm living in the silver lining.
03:18But then there are these moments where I'm worried and concerned and I don't know how long
03:23this is going to last.
03:25And I've eaten all of the snacks and I'm going to sit around and just be thick this summer.
03:32Okay.
03:33And that's when I'm living under the cloud.
03:35I had a friend whose mom was diagnosed and passed so suddenly after, you know, contracting
03:42this disease and that's a cloud.
03:46So they asked me to speak today about having faith and to give a message of hope.
03:52And I wanted to connect with you all to let you know that there are these inevitables of
03:58life, whether we're living in a pandemic or just going about our day to day lives where
04:05we have moments of silver linings and then we have moments of living under a cloud.
04:11And I want to talk very briefly about those who are experiencing those from day to day.
04:17Sometimes we can feel guilty for living in either of those truths, right?
04:23If we're living in those silver linings, are we also discrediting the struggle that our
04:29healthcare workers are going through that our, you know, grocery clerks and essential employees
04:35are experiencing because we found a way to enjoy something that has been challenging for
04:40them.
04:41But when we're living in the cloud and the darkness and the worry, then we have that guilt
04:47of maybe not being fully present with our families you're watching today.
04:51And I just want to encourage you and maybe comfort you and knowing that there is nothing
04:57wrong with living in a silver lining and also living underneath the cloud.
05:02As a matter of fact, we can't have a silver lining unless we have clouds.
05:07And I was studying last night just for our time together today.
05:11And I wanted to learn more about how God uses clouds and times within the Bible where I saw
05:18God intentionally use clouds.
05:20And I was drawn to Exodus when the children of Israel are leaving the Egyptian rule and
05:28they're walking their way towards the promised land.
05:32And just very quickly, I want to share this scripture with you guys, because I think it's going to
05:36be helpful as we really dig into this season, it says, and the Lord went before them by day
05:43in a pillar of cloud to lead the way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light.
05:49So as to go by day and night, he did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar
05:55of fire by night from before the people.
05:58So he kept this cloud over them as they were headed towards the promised land.
06:03And it just made me realize that God uses cloudy days.
06:08Sometimes we think the only time that we can experience faith, the only time that we can
06:12have hope and optimism is when everything is going the way that we planned, when everything
06:17is aligning the way that we had hoped.
06:20But the truth is that perhaps God is even most powerful in leading and guiding us, not when
06:26we know where we're going, but when we have surrendered and succumbed to the reality of I'm living
06:32in a cloudy day.
06:34Faith does not mean that you have to ignore how you're feeling.
06:37It doesn't mean that you have to pretend that you're okay when you're not.
06:41Faith is ultimately about trust that even when I can't see what I hoped I would see in this
06:46moment, I trust that there is guidance happening in the midst of this cloudy day.
06:53And I love this text so much because it reminded me about how God can use and guide us in cloudy
06:59days.
07:00So you're here and you're wondering how can I have faith in these cloudy days when one minute
07:06I have a silver lining and the other times it feels dark, like there's just thunder ready
07:11to roar over my life.
07:12Because the truth is we have this pandemic, but then we also still have life happening,
07:18right?
07:19We still have family relationships that are changing.
07:21We still have personal issues that we're navigating and having to overcome.
07:27And so at any given moment, we could be hopeful and optimistic, and then the next we could
07:32be living in a challenging season.
07:34And I want to share with you just three things very quickly that I think can be helpful and
07:40useful to you in maintaining faith, right?
07:43So the first one is staying present.
07:45Staying present means that you're going to need to live fully in these moments, even though
07:50it's not easy.
07:51So sometimes we can just focus so much on I'm coming out of this, I'm going to be on
07:56the other side, I'm going to just overcome that we don't live fully in the moment.
08:02And I think the best way to maintain our emotional and spiritual and mental health in this season
08:09is to be honest about how we're feeling and staying present.
08:12How are you doing today?
08:14Not how are you going to be doing, not what's going to happen, but how are you feeling presently
08:19in this moment?
08:21This moment is carrying a version and dimension of you that you haven't been introduced to
08:25yet.
08:26If you are so intent in breathing past it and moving past it, you may never get to know how
08:31you handle yourself in different seasons of life.
08:34And if you don't know how to take care of yourself in different seasons of life, then
08:38no relationship, whether it's the relationship you have with God or with others, it's going
08:43to be able to serve you in moments where you're feeling perhaps cloudy.
08:48You're going to want to look back and be able to make an account for how you felt.
08:52How did I feel last time I was in a situation like this?
08:55So that you can also see how I came out of it.
08:58So as you focus in and hone in, you're going to be able to understand who you are in different
09:02seasons of life.
09:04You'll know that I tend to get a little low.
09:06I tend to get a little worried.
09:07I have to work out.
09:08It's better for me mentally.
09:10I want you to stay present in this season and really get to connect with yourself so that
09:14you can learn who you are from season to season.
09:17This is one of the things that has really, really been helping to balance like those cloudy
09:22moments, right?
09:23For me is I've been able to, number two, acknowledge and give gratitude for what hasn't changed.
09:30There are things that I do throughout the day that I would have been doing regardless of
09:34whether or not we were in a pandemic or not.
09:37Sometimes we can think so much about how life has changed, about what we aren't able to do
09:42anymore, how we aren't able to function the way that we used to, that we miss out on seeing
09:47how things haven't changed, right?
09:49So I opened my eyes this morning.
09:51I would have done that whether or not we were in a pandemic.
09:53I brushed my teeth.
09:54I would have done that whether or not we were in a pandemic or not.
09:57Take a moment and give gratitude for the things that haven't changed.
10:00And if you're like me, I think you're going to see that there are things in our lives that
10:04have stayed consistent more than there are things that have drastically changed, right?
10:09And so in the midst of it all, whether you're a hospital worker or you're at home with the
10:15kids, make sure that you take a moment and say, at least this part of my life has remained
10:19consistent.
10:20And those things are going to remind you of faith staying consistent, hope staying consistent.
10:26There are some consistencies in the midst of the change.
10:30And we got to know that because it helps us to stay anchored and established.
10:34And the last thing is to actively take time to see outside of yourself.
10:40I was walking with my 10 year old and I realized I've been so consumed with how I'm experiencing
10:45this that I haven't asked her how she's navigating this process.
10:49What do you think about this?
10:50My daughter's four and she gave her baby doll a bath yesterday because she said she had coronavirus
10:56and I was like, what?
10:58I don't know if the bath is going to take away the coronavirus that your baby doll has,
11:02let's talk about this coronavirus and what does this look like from the eyes of a four
11:06year old?
11:07How is my husband handling this?
11:09His life has changed.
11:10Our children's lives have changed.
11:12Our grocery store clerk, I was in the grocery store yesterday and said, thank you for what
11:16you guys are doing.
11:17I know it's been a lot.
11:18Make sure that you also realize that this is happening to everyone.
11:21It's not just happening to you.
11:23And sometimes we can't change what's happening, but taking the extra step to see things from
11:28another person's perspective, one helps us remember that we aren't in it alone, but also
11:33helps us to become servants in this world.
11:35And when we live to serve those around us and to not just be inundated with how we feel,
11:41we see the world become a better place.
11:44Those are three things that I am doing that are helping me maintain my faith and to have
11:48hope in this season.
11:50But I think the primary thing that I want you to remember in our time together is how
11:55God uses cloudy days to remember that you don't have to feel guilty for whatever you're
12:01feeling in any given moment, but to know that you're still progressing.
12:05You're still moving forward, even in the midst of those cloudy days, you're not stuck.
12:10You are not in it by yourself.
12:12And we're going to look up and we're going to be beyond this.
12:15We're going to be better as a society and a culture.
12:18I believe that with all of my heart.
12:20And if you don't believe it, that the culture is going to be better, I think you got to start
12:24with yourself.
12:25I'm going to be better.
12:26I'm going to be more intentional.
12:27I'm going to be more disciplined, more focused, set your goals, set your intentions and begin
12:32to work towards that and know that when you have down days, when you have days that you're
12:36struggling, that it doesn't mean that you're not progressing.
12:39It doesn't mean that you're not moving forward.
12:42It means that you're human, that you have feelings, that you have emotions.
12:46And sometimes when we can't see our way, we have to trust that God is still using those
12:51cloudy days.
12:52I'm Sarah Jakes Roberts.
12:53You can find me on Instagram at Sarah Jakes Roberts or on the Facebooks.
12:58I love you guys.
12:59I'm praying God be with them, protect them, guide them, remind them that they're never in
13:04this thing on their own and that together we'll be stronger than we were before.
13:34Bye.
13:35Bye.
13:36Bye.
13:37Bye.
13:38Bye.
13:39Bye.
13:40Bye.
14:04Bye.
14:05Bye.
14:07Bye.
14:17Bye.
14:19Bye.
14:24Bye.
14:29I love you.
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