Oikeo Call #39 — Anchored in the Lord

 

This week’s call named something many of us are feeling but don’t always have language for: emotional whiplash. It’s a season where life doesn’t move in a straight line but swings like a pendulum. Highs and lows. Celebration and grief. Breakthrough and burden, all colliding in the same breath.

One moment you’re thanking God for His goodness. The next, you’re crying out for strength just to make it through the day. You’re winning in one area of your life while barely holding it together in another. It feels like a roller coaster, but not the kind that makes you laugh. The kind that leaves you disoriented, gripping the rails, trying desperately to find solid ground again.

Unfortunately, this tension is not new. God has always worked in the space between the already and the not yet.

When Life Holds Two Truths at Once

Look at David. The same man who was anointed king by the prophet Samuel in 1 Samuel 16:13 spent years running for his life from King Saul (1 Samuel 19-31, NIV). Chosen and crowned in the spirit realm, yet hunted like an animal in the natural. He came back from victory in battle only to find his city burned and his family taken captive (1 Samuel 30:1-6, NIV). Victory and devastation in the same day. You think that didn’t mess with his mind?

Consider John the Baptist. The man who prepared the way for the Messiah, who baptized Jesus Himself in the Jordan River (Matthew 3:13-17, NIV), ended up in Herod’s prison. And from that cell, even John had doubts. He sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” (Matthew 11:2-3, NIV). This is the same John who declared, “Behold the Lamb of God!” Now he’s locked up, questioning everything. The forerunner finished his race in a dungeon, beheaded because of a dancing girl and a foolish king’s pride (Matthew 14:1-12, NIV).

And Jesus, the Son of God, healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead, and fed thousands with a boy’s lunch (Matthew 14:13-21, John 11:38-44, NIV). Yet, He was questioned, opposed, rejected by His own people, and ultimately crucified between two thieves (Matthew 27:32-56, NIV). Glory and suffering. Power and persecution. Miracles and murder. All in the same ministry.

The pattern is unmistakable: God’s presence does not eliminate tension. It sustains us through it.

So here’s the real question: What do you do when life refuses to stabilize? When the highs don’t cancel out the lows, and the lows don’t erase the highs? When you can’t make sense of why blessing and burden are sharing the same space in your life?

The Response: Go Where Jesus Went

Jesus did not try to outwork the chaos. He didn’t argue His way into peace or hustle His way to stability. He withdrew.

Over and over again, we see Him step away from the noise, the demands, the crowds, and the ministry itself. He went back to the Father. In the early morning hours. On mountainsides. In solitary places (Mark 1:35, Luke 5:16, NIV).

Now let’s be clear: that is not retreat. That is strategy. That is warfare. That is how you stay sane when everything around you is insane.

 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

Matthew 11:28 (NIV)

 

Rest is not found in resolution. It is found in presence. You don’t need all the answers. You need the Answer. You don’t need all the pieces to fit. You need to fit yourself into His peace.

God Is Not Moving, Even When You Are

In a season of emotional swings, the danger is not the highs. The danger is not the lows. The danger is losing your center. The danger is letting circumstances determine your spiritual temperature. The danger is drifting.

But hear this truth: God does not shift with your circumstances. He does not rise and fall with your emotions. He does not panic when you panic or question His plan when you question yours. He remains. Steady. Constant. Unchanging.

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.”
Psalm 91:1 (NIV)

 

The scripture says, “Dwells.” Not visits. Not drops by when things get tough. Dwelling makes a home. Takes up residence. Stays put.

There is a place where the noise quiets down. Where fear doesn’t control the conversation. Where clarity cuts through the confusion. That place is not found by fixing everything around you, by getting your life together, or by waiting until you have it all figured out.

That place is found by staying in Him. Abiding in Him. Remaining in Him. Dwelling in Him.

An Anchor, Not an Escape

Faith is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. It’s not a ticket to skip hard seasons or a formula to make problems disappear. Faith is not escapism. It’s not denying reality or pretending everything is fine when it’s falling apart.

Faith is an anchor.

An anchor doesn’t remove the storm. It doesn’t calm the waves or stop the wind. What it does is keep you from drifting while the storm passes. It keeps you grounded when everything else is shaking. It holds you in place when the current tries to pull you away.

And that’s what this call reminded us: You don’t have to have it all figured out. You don’t have to resolve every tension or smooth out every rough edge. You don’t have to flatten the highs or eliminate the lows or make your life look like somebody’s highlight reel.

You just have to stay anchored. You just have to hold on to what holds you.

Call to Action

💬 Where are you feeling the tension right now? What’s pulling you in two directions? What’s making you feel like you’re living in two different realities at once?

This week, don’t try to solve it all. Don’t exhaust yourself trying to make everything make sense. Just anchor yourself in God’s presence and let Him hold you steady. Let Him be your firm foundation when everything else is shifting sand.

Spend time with Him. Not because you need something from Him, but because you need Him. Read His Word. Worship Him. Pray. Be still. Dwell.

Join us for the next Oikeo Prayer Call. Stay connected. Stay grounded. Stay anchored.

For previous calls and resources, visit Oikeo.org. To receive announcements, text your name and email to 917-856-5956.