A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing;
Ecclesiastes 3:5b
We think that fear must be played out in fight, with military intervention, or in flight, via isolationism – but we are not hunted game, and those are not the only options. There is also the possibility of acceptance, with its corollary of understanding and its ultimate manifestation in embracing. -Andrew Solomon
Avoidance anxiety has come to stay in its subtlety in the lives of many. We have many genuine reasons why we prefer to be in our corners and mind our own business. We are not invalidating your experiences that have caused you to close up to many. In fact, it is advisable to sometimes desist from embracing everyone, every teaching, every doctrine, etc. What may seemingly resemble love may be a dagger looking to stab you in the back as you interlock in an embrace. And one should be cautious at all times.
In your endeavour to be cautious, we have created worry inside ourselves, causing us to avoid everything and anything. We are afraid of intimacy and allowing others to be around us and be blessed, a blessing to us, or both. Tara Brach stated, “There is so much divide in the world. So, what is the genuine way to healing? It can begin now, by accepting the life that is here.” Accept your current existence and do not allow fear or negative experiences in the past to influence your decisions or inaction.
Enjoy life in all its complexity as you move through it. Even in difficult times, there are numerous lessons to be learnt. Use discernment to determine what and when you should embrace and what you shouldn’t. Having a deeper relationship with God gives us the ability to distinguish. May we be granted the ability to fully appreciate God and all of the benefits that His presence has in store for us.
God bless you.