I don’t know about you, but I really hate crying.

That feeling when your throat closes up, your eyes well with tears, and no matter what you do, you can’t stop your lip from quivering. The pressure builds, and it feels like the whole world is looking at you, scrutinizing you with their gaze.

To me, crying is the ultimate embarrassment. I hate crying, but I especially hate crying in front of people. Oh, the mortifying ordeal of being known.

God and I have talked a lot about my aversion to letting my eyes leak, but this week, he had something special to say to me about it.

What God Says About Crying

It’s been a tough week. I have a few major life changes happening, all while I’m starting to release my latest book, Call It Consequences. It feels like a lot because it is a lot. There’s family stuff, health stuff, relational stress, and to add to all of it, I might have to move, and every place I’ve looked hasn’t worked out.

The biggest thing I’ve been trying to do through all of it is trust God. That’s what I’m supposed to do, after all. He knows exactly the situation I’m in, he knows the intricate details, and I know his character. God, the providor. God, the protector.

And I feel like I’ve been mostly handling it pretty well. I’m stressed, sure, but I’m trying my best to trust God. Am I sleeping well? No. Not at all. Is my thought-life full of grace and joy and peace? I really wish it were—and I confess, I haven’t been the best at speaking kindly to myself, like at all. But I’m trying…

It all came to a head the other day at work, of all places.

I was moving my car from the street to the parking lot. I’d just shoveled the sidewalk and carried a bunch of boxes inside from the book event we’d just done. I’d tried to connect and focus on God during our morning worship and found myself more distracted than anything. It was cold — like, 7 degrees cold.

I was exhausted physically, mentally, and spiritually.

After shifting my car back into park, I sat for just a second. I felt the pressure build behind my eyes. My throat hurt. My skin felt all itchy and aggravated. So I let it out and cried. Hard.

Between sobs, I confessed to God, “I don’t know how to trust you anymore.” Another sob. “I’m trying, and it’s not working—clearly.”

Sometimes you just need to confess to Him what you’re feeling, right? 1 Peter 5:7 is one of my favorite verses.

Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

1 Peter 5:7

In that moment, I heard a real faint whisper from God. “Just because you need to cry doesn’t mean you aren’t trusting me.”

God Wants Honesty

This whole time, I’ve been trying to trust God by “pulling myself up and pretending to be okay”. That doesn’t work. It’s not actually trusting God with your whole self. God can handle your emotions.

Crying is a release. It’s a way for your body to process what you’re going through. You can cry from an overload of any emotion, not just sadness. Crying is something God has designed our bodies to do.

I still don’t know how everything is going to work out. I still feel stressed about it.

But I’m starting to sleep better. I don’t feel like a shaken can of pop about to explode. I can trust God with my future, and I can trust God with my emotions.

My tears are my strength because they give me the ability to release what I’ve been holding and give it to God.

You know who else can’t admit they aren’t okay?

Lorraine, the main character in Call It Consequences!

Lorraine’s got a lot going on. Work, her dad, the mysterious guy in a black suit that keeps asking her penetrating questions….not to mention her childhood self popping up to cause even more problems. Life just doesn’t stop, huh?

Call It Consequences comes out January 21st, 2026, which is why I want to offer you something super special!

Don’t wait! Join the team!