The fog.

It hits us in our prayer lives. We pray and pray and it seems like nothing happens.

We look for clarity in decisions, figuring out God’s will, what to do with this marital situation, this career move. Do we have kids now, get married now?

The fog.

It comes around us and paralyzes us, and it keeps us stuck.

Life isn’t meant to be a fog. Faith isn’t meant to be a fog.

Are there times when it is difficult to see through something? Yes.

Does God use those times to teach us some incredible lessons? Yes.

One of the best ways that I’ve learned to see through the fog of life and faith is through distance and relationships.

We need distance from what is holding us up or causing a struggle in our lives. We need to remove ourselves from that place and pull back. Mark Batterson says, “Change of place + change of pace = change of perspective”, and he’s right.

Distance allows us to see things in a new perspective. Distance also allows us to let go of things that stress us out or seem difficult. If you look back on your life, you can see how there are some things that were a big deal in the moment, but now you wonder why you lost sleep over it.

That’s the benefit of distance.

The second thing that helps to clear the fog is relationships.

Other people bring a perspective that you don’t have. They are able to see things you don’t and push on things you might miss. They are also able to remind you of truths that you can easily forget. This is crucial as you wrestle through past hurts or navigate a choice that can change your life in dramatic ways (like marriage or a cross country move).