I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. It was late, and I was sitting in the animal emergency room waiting on an X-ray that would reveal whether our new puppy, Maddie Grace, had ingested the squeaker in her toy. I wanted to laugh, but the worry of whether she would be okay was keeping me from seeing any humor.
All the worst-case scenarios were running through my mind as I paced in the exam room, flustered, and mumbling under my breath. This was not the place I wanted to spend a Friday night, and not the frame of mind I needed to be in after a long week. When I was worn out from pacing, I sat down on the bench and took in the cool, quiet of the room. “Oh Jesus, I just need some help.” I prayed. “I’m tired. My head hurts. I’m worried about my dog.” Mental and emotional exhaustion made my body feel wrung out, like I had nothing left to help me handle the moment.
In the stillness of that room, I took a deep breath, and could almost hear God whispering to my heart, Lisa, take a grace day.
What is a grace day? I loved the way it sounded, and I closed my eyes and imagined what I needed. God already knew. I needed a day to bask in His grace. To stop, listen, rest, and know that the grace is sufficient to carry me despite all the worries that crowd my mind. I needed the grace day because I had been holding things in so I could be strong for others. I needed to let God have it all.
Then I began to argue with God, even though I knew all of that was true. “But Lord, I already do that!” And that was humorous—me arguing with God about taking a grace day. I needed a lot of grace.
I am willing to give grace to everyone else, but it has been hard to give it to myself. In that moment, I realized to walk in His grace, I had to stop. I needed time to rest, cry, pray, listen in the quiet and stillness. It was so necessary to take that day, not only to be covered in His grace, but to give grace to myself.
I have written about stillness and listening to God many times, but that night, God showed me how crucial it is. We often hold emotions and feelings tightly inside so we can 
charge through the tough stuff. We just keep going, and don’t take time to stop and listen to the still, small voice of God. He calms every storm and worry. The more grace days I take, the more clearly I will hear the Voice that leads, reassures, encourages, convicts and comforts me. The emotions I hold inside can be released into His hands.
Maddie is now “squeaker free” and happier than ever. After my night in the Animal ER, I took a grace day. It felt wonderful to stay in my PJs all day and rest, listen, and let God take all the worrying scenarios from me. So, while I didn’t plan to spend my Friday waiting to see an X-ray of a squeaker in my dog, I came away from it with a new awareness I think we can all use.
It’s okay to give yourself grace, so take a grace day! (And schedule it if you need to.)
Because soul care is important.