Our group was in a physically threatening situation when one individual panicked. She had no sense of fear for the actual threat but thrashed and screamed in response to an everyday occurrence. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she apologized. "I can't help it. I'm just feeling very paranoid."
The truth, for each of us, is that our fear was not (is not) "out there." It was, and is, "in here." Fear concerns a future event, something that has not happened. Fear focuses on something I can't control but wish I could. It invades my thoughts, drives my behavior, and results in overwhelming emotions about something that isn't real or factual.
We fear recurrence of a painful past event. We fear change, uncharted territory, failure, success. We avoid people, places and things that hint of danger. All the while, the sneaky, pervasive truth is that what I fear has become my god.
I worship what I fear. "No way!" you say? Take a step back. How deep is the thought-groove of fear in relation to the thought-groove of faith? How often do you make choices based on avoiding or confronting the object of your fear?Do you find yourself stained by sin as you manage fear? Or do you turn first to the God who knows you and made you?
What we think about, what drives our behavior, and what we are willing to sin to get (or avoid) has replaced the God of the universe in our hearts. It rules us. It enslaves, drives and controls us. We are "under the influence" of unseen/unknown situations when we could be "under the influence" of the Holy Spirit in obedience and trust.
So what did we do in the face of danger and unreasonable fear? We sang. We sang loudly. We changed our focus from the unknown to the God who designs and directs all--with shaky voices and a tear squeaking out here and there, we sang lustily:
In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.
In Christ alone! - who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless babe.
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.
There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.
No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand:
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.*
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Proverbs 4:23
*See more at: http://www.stuarttownend.co.uk/song/in-christ-alone/#sthash.zKg4tgJu.dpuf
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| http://footnotescounseling.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/o-ANXIETY-facebook.jpg |
The truth, for each of us, is that our fear was not (is not) "out there." It was, and is, "in here." Fear concerns a future event, something that has not happened. Fear focuses on something I can't control but wish I could. It invades my thoughts, drives my behavior, and results in overwhelming emotions about something that isn't real or factual.
We fear recurrence of a painful past event. We fear change, uncharted territory, failure, success. We avoid people, places and things that hint of danger. All the while, the sneaky, pervasive truth is that what I fear has become my god.
I worship what I fear. "No way!" you say? Take a step back. How deep is the thought-groove of fear in relation to the thought-groove of faith? How often do you make choices based on avoiding or confronting the object of your fear?Do you find yourself stained by sin as you manage fear? Or do you turn first to the God who knows you and made you?
What we think about, what drives our behavior, and what we are willing to sin to get (or avoid) has replaced the God of the universe in our hearts. It rules us. It enslaves, drives and controls us. We are "under the influence" of unseen/unknown situations when we could be "under the influence" of the Holy Spirit in obedience and trust.
So what did we do in the face of danger and unreasonable fear? We sang. We sang loudly. We changed our focus from the unknown to the God who designs and directs all--with shaky voices and a tear squeaking out here and there, we sang lustily:
In Christ alone my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.
In Christ alone! - who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless babe.
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.
There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.
No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand:
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.*
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Proverbs 4:23
*See more at: http://www.stuarttownend.co.uk/song/in-christ-alone/#sthash.zKg4tgJu.dpuf
Thanks for the encouragement mrs millage
ReplyDeleteHolly c
Thanks for stopping by, Molly! Come again soon.
ReplyDelete