Balloons and Bikes

Festive balloons that once floated in the air to celebrate my birthday now huddle on the floor. The helium is gone; they’ve shrunk in size, resembling pastel Easter eggs.

 Some days, I feel like a deflated balloon. Someone or something lets out my air, slowly or with a sudden bang, and I’m face down with nowhere to look, but up!

God’s grace is sufficient, His power is made perfect in weakness. (2 Cor 12:9) Really, if so, then how do I respond to life’s circumstances?

Do I lift a limp fist and vow to rise again on my own strength?  Or seek God’s presence: empty, ego deflated; hands open wide to receive His grace and power?

Last summer, I went with my family on a bike ride. We didn’t realize the dirt path to the lake was predominately uphill. We spent more time pushing the bikes than we did riding them. Red-faced, I fussed at my daughter’s athletic boyfriend who chose the route.

At one point, the path flattened and we jumped on our bikes, pedaling with all our might until…..there was another incline. This time, the boyfriend rode his bike beside mine, and placing his hand on my lower back, pushed me forward while we pedaled. I was depleted, but I could continue the journey because I relied on the boyfriend’s strength. His strength was mine. And I understood how… 

Every circumstance is an opportunity to rely on God’s strength, experience grace sufficient for the moment.

 Trusting His Spirit to fill me, lift me higher and higher until I’m buoyant as a helium balloon rising in the sky; joyful and free in His presence.     

Author: Karen Foster

I'd like to say I've changed, but after decades of living, I still have the same four passions. My relationship with Jesus, spending time with family, attending live theater, and writing devotions & first-person stories about a loving, faithful God who reveals Himself in our every day circumstances. View all posts by Karen Foster