So, apparently dealing with FEAR is an ongoing theme with me...just realized that my last post had to do with fear and yet here I am again...
First of all let me begin by stating - fear is real, fear can mask itself in many ways, and fear can be well - scary! Over the past month, I have seen and experienced fear in multiple ways and in regards to multiple areas. I am not talking just about the fear of the dark, or fear of strangers, or fear of goblins in the closet - although these can be real fears. No - I am talking about fear of the future, of the unknown, of the what ifs....
Just this morning, as I opened up my Facebook and began reading posts and articles shared by various friends I sensed this overwhelming fear that we as a nation have in regards to the upcoming election, politics, etc. One post even went so far as to state that if Donald Trump isn't elected, America will no longer exist? What?? Now if that isn't designed to scare you I don't know what is!!! Another statement said that really, there isn't hope for America at all regardless who wins - it's all a conspiracy anyway. WOWZA!!!
For me personally...the fear has been a little more personal. If you have talked to me or followed my Facebook posts you know that the past 7 days have been quite the roller coaster for our family! Last Sunday night, Joel came home from work with a mild fever and just feeling blah...long story short by Tuesday morning it had progressed to a 103.8 fever, no energy etc. I took him to urgent care, which then ended up with us in the ER and eventually by Tuesday afternoon he was admitted to the hospital! Result...he had an extremely low white blood cell count (as in 68 when normal is 4000), dehydration, and pneumonia. To sum it up...there was and still is not an explanation as to what happened to his body. As I sat in that hospital room and listened to the Doctor explain the gravity of the situation, FEAR overcame me! Fear of what does this mean? What if he has cancer? What if he is in the hospital for weeks? Fear of what does this mean for our family? What does it mean for our church planting plans? Can he still even work? Yesterday, he was back in the ER due to some pain issues which again caused all this FEAR...(he's better today) You get the idea...I was AFRAID.
If that isn't enough, Satan had to go a step further and remind me of moments in the hospital with my mom throughout her last year of life. Emotionally it was draining....
Take it a step further - we are still waiting on some key beginning pieces of the church planting process to fall into place, pieces that we REALLY thought would be in place back in April or May and here we are almost to August and they are still unknown. Fear of did we miss God? What if this all falls apart? What then?
Combine ALL of this with fears of my earlier post about changing careers, etc and well...I think it is safe to say I was ALLOWING myself to be overcome with fear!
So, back to this morning...after looking at Facebook I KNEW where I needed to go...I needed to go to the one place I KNOW has an answer...The Word of God! God's Word has LOTS to say about fear and being afraid...Here are just a few that I found.
"After these events, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield; your reward will be very great." Genesis 15:1
"Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
"He is to say to them: ‘Listen, Israel: Today you are about to engage in battle with your enemies. Do not be cowardly. Do not be afraid, alarmed, or terrified because of them. 4 For the Lord your God is the One who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.’" Deuteronomy 20:3-4
"Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff—they comfort me." Psalm 23:4
"When I am afraid, I will trust in You." Psalm 56:3
"There is no fear in love; instead, perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment.So the one who fears has not reached perfection in love." I John 4:18
These are just a few of the verses on being afraid and fear...there are more. However, here is my conclusion... As believers, we CANNOT be overcome by fear, we can't let it dictate our decisions our thoughts or actions. We have to go to the ONE who is so much greater than all our fears. Believe me...I don't have this perfected, in fact I pretty much feel like I am typing this for myself more than anyone else!
I can't tell you what tomorrow will bring or even what the rest of today will bring...I can only say that MY HOPE, MY STRENGTH, MY FUTURE rests in Christ and Christ alone! This morning as I have been working and researching for this post this song has been playing in my mind...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sx8wTnnfSc
Eye of the Storm by Ryan Stevenson
Yes, God knows that the way to speak to my heart is through music that reminds me where to place my hope..."I find my peace in Jesus Name"
My prayer this morning, is that if YOU find yourself afraid or consumed with fear for whatever reason, you will RUN to HIM!!!
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