This Too Shall Pass

A wise woman named Corrie ten Boom once said: “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. If you look at God, you’ll be at rest.” As the German Blitzkrieg spread through the Netherlands, her room held a secret closet that could conceal up to six Jews. Her actions have been estimated to have saved over 800 lives. I bet that she told the men, women, and children she harbored something similar to “this too shall pass”. Later, when she would be imprisoned by the Gestapo, I’m sure she told herself the same thing. Though the terrors of the Holocaust are far beyond that which most of us can relate to, we all face times of great turmoil in our lives. 

Nearing the end of a long, stressful school year, I find that I and many of my fellow students find ourselves in especially demanding times. Everything happens at once, it seems. Illness, competitions, educational opportunities, and final ceremonies litter themselves across our last three or four weeks. I tend to internalize everything in an attempt to let things go, and it more often than not ends with me realizing the severity of them all at once. While this method helps me some along the way, it leaves me breathless with anxiety at the end, and I am sure I’m not the only one.

I began band in the sixth grade, adding clarinet to my love of music. It provided me with a safe haven when I felt like I was an outcast. The last concert of the year we played a piece that is now very close to my heart called This Too Shall Pass by Ok Go. I encourage you to follow this link, which will lead you to the version they performed with the Notre Dame marching band. I don’t even know if the clarinet part had more than five or six notes (though I’m sure I still have the music somewhere), but the feeling of triumph in playing that song was one of the first tastes of the true power of music I was given. Check out these lyrics:

“You know you can’t keep lettin’ it get you down
And you can’t keep draggin’ that dead weight around.
If there ain’t all that much to lug around,
Better run like hell when you hit the ground.

When the morning comes.
When the morning comes.

Let it go, this too shall pass.
Let it go, this too shall pass.

Let it go, this too shall pass.
(You know you can’t keep lettin’ it get you down. No, you can’t keep lettin’ it get you down.)”

Today is also Good Shepherd Sunday, a comforting reminder that Christ lays down his life for us, taking our lives in His hands. He guards us from the wolves of anxiety and fear, leaving behind everyone else to find us when we don’t believe we can handle our lives anymore.

Last night I listened to this song for the first time in at least a year, perhaps a sign of the day ahead. Then today, my dad calmed me by saying “this too shall pass,” and my grandmother followed up with the same phrase later that day, neither of them knowing that I had already been told the same in one form or another. Needless to say, I believe that God wanted me to know that I can “let it go, this too shall pass.” He followed me when I strayed in my fear and has brought me back, assuring me that I can face whatever this week has in store for me.

He says this to all of us, every day, every time that we begin to doubt our ability to persevere. He says to us: “Yes, you are my flock: you people are the flock of my pasture, and I am your God.” (Ezekiel 34:31). When we run away from the wolves when we are unable to see the shepherd, He reminds us that he will never leave us. Let it go, this too shall pass.

Advertisement