Posts Tagged worry

Faith the verb, not the noun

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

As I have shared before, I am in the midst of a tremendous Bible study. And not just because the study itself is great – which it is – but because our leader is exceptional at guiding us into insightful and meaningful conversations. It is a small group and everyone contributes something to the discussions. Each week, I walk away amazed at how much that day’s message spoke to me.

One thing I find very intriguing is that several of us are in a season of transition or letting go of a stage in our life. We are trying to navigate into unchartered territories and fumbling our way into the next season God has in store. Our leader has recently come out the other side of a huge change in her life, and is intimately familiar with the seasons of change and transition. I know it is no coincidence; this is one of God’s divine appointments. We were divinely placed in this study together, to learn together and to encourage one another. This could be one of the best Bible studies I have ever had the privilege to be a part of.

Oddly enough, moving 1,300 miles to a new home has not been the life-changing event that has caused me angst. God has blessed me beyond measure with making this transition as smooth as possible into a new city and state. I believe God has granted me this gift so I am comfortable and assured enough to help my children feel secure with such a big change in their little worlds.

For many, many months I have felt God calling me into a new direction personally. This calling means moving out of a season that I didn’t think was a season, but a life-long career choice. I have been wrestling with letting go. Letting go of what has been the norm in my life for the past 7 and ½ years. It is my place of security because it is familiar. It is safe because I know what to expect, even in the hard times. And, my biggest source of angst, it is my resource for additional income.

Being obedient to God is the only optional for my life.  I want to choose nothing less. But….but….this is going to require faith. Not faith that I talk about, faith that I actually put into action. If this is where the rubber meets the road, well, this is where my choices meet my faith. Is my faith in God a noun or a verb?

Faith means letting go of a secure place to step into the unknown. Faith means risking failure or embarrassment. (I am okay with the first, the latter is a little harder to handle.) Faith means I have to stop wrestling, and surrender. Faith means trusting God to be my provider, and trust Him with my finances. Yes, faith is leaving the familiar and stepping out when I am not sure I can see the first stepping stone to land on.

When I was praying over this today, I remembered the bird’s nest in the tree in our backyard. Seth and Dad were working in the backyard when they found a baby bird that had fallen from it’s nest.

Dad and Seth were careful to rescue the baby back to it’s nest without touching it with their hands. It looked so fragile.

They were cautious not to get their own scent on the baby, and not to hurt it when returning it to safety. It nestled right in, back to the comfort of it’s warm little home. Of course, Dad and Seth wondered where the momma bird was, and when she would return. They got their answer pretty quickly.

Momma bird came from behind Dad’s head, making angry dives at him. Momma bird was not happy at all with someone being close to her baby.

We had a good chuckle about how the momma bird was so protective anytime we would take a peek at her baby. Today, I was reminded of this baby in our tree as I was seeking God and praying to have active faith.

 The opposite of faith is worry. And I am an expert in the field of all-things-worry. I have years of experience at it, and if there is nothing glaring that needs fretting over, I am skilled at finding something to be anxious about. There are few that possess my level of expertise in worrying. You know the saying, “90% of what you worry about never even happens?” My thinking is, “Look at all the things I prevented just by worrying about them.” This is not an achievement that I am particularly proud of, but it is a fact.

Obviously, the following passage is highlighted and underlined in my Bible: Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavently Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you worrying can add a single hour to his life? (Matthew 6: 25-27)

I know that God is watching over me at all times, just as the momma bird seemed to come out of nowhere to save her baby from perceived danger. He meets all my needs, just as the birds are feed. He is ever-present and ready to direct my steps. I know my part is to take the first step, and willingly and whole-heartedly obey. I cannot waste precious time worrying, instead of using my faith. Despite the sadness I feel over the passing of a season, I want to embrace what God has in store for the next one. And it is going to take my faith to be able to do that. The verb kind of faith.

 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
 

 

A large helping of Peace with a side of Joy

Monday, August 1, 2011

My oldest little pumpkin just recently went to spend a week with Grandma and Papa. This was the first time he went without at least one of his siblings. He was really excited to be the sole-attention-grabber for a whole week. I called him half-way through his visit and asked him if he wanted me to come get him early.

His response was, “Mom, I am in paradise. Just let me enjoy it for a few more days.”

He experienced another first this week as well. Golden Corral. I don’t remember the last time I set foot in a Golden Corral, but I know it was many years before he was born. Apparently, this place is a young boy’s dream come true.

 ”Mom, you would not believe it!” He gushed to me. “We went to this place called Golden Coral.” Yes, he pronounced it as coral instead of corral.

“They had these separate concession stands set up where you just walk up and get food for free. And they had all kinds of different foods. And you can get all you want.” Deep breath so he could continue to gush words as fast as possible.

“And they even had shrimp. Oh my goodness, Mom, it was like the best shrimp you have ever had.” Obviously his palate has not developed yet. “And you can eat all you want of it. And they had desserts too. They were really great concession stands.”

Yes, it is apparent to me too, that we need to expose our children to more….things….buffets…variety. But taking them to Golden Corral would mean we would have to eat it also. That is a problem to solve for another day. But his Dad and I did rather enjoy his story.

This morning during my Bible study though, I thought of his story. I pictured him having all these choices in front of him. And picking and choosing what he would take. Sometimes carefully choosing, other times not picking something because he didn’t know it was even there or he didn’t know that it really did taste good, and was good for him.

I am studying the peace of Christ. He is the Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 calls Christ the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. I read in four different verses in the Gospels where Jesus said, “Peace be with you.”

One of my biggest problems/sins/setbacks/difficulties/hindrances is that I am a worrier. I worry. Too much. A lot. Matthew 6:25 says, in red I might add, to “not worry about your life.” And verse 27 goes on to say, still in red,”Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

In fact, worrying can take hours from your life. It is a proven cause of many disesases, because worry is stress. But what it does for me is steals from my quality of life; worrying steals my joy. I am at a table of all God has promised to His children – and I am His daughter – and I am not accepting what He is offering me. I am treating it like a buffet line, picking and choosing. That is not what He intended.

I do not have to worry, because He is the Prince of Peace. I should be casting my cares on Him every day, every hour. (1 Peter 5:7 and Psalm 55:22). And how I am learning to do this is by meditating on the scripture in 2 Corinthians 10:5 that says “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” When I am not practicing taking every thought captive to Christ, I worry. And I am not obeying Christ.

In Matthew 6 Jesus goes on to say in verses 33 and 34, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

The devil will pitch a tent my mind when I am not taking every thought captive and making it obedient to Christ. The devil sets up camp and I sin with constant worry. I am definitely a work in progress. But when I feel myself weaken in my resolve to capture the worry and cast it on Christ, I remember one of my mottos: Don’t allow anything in your life you don’t want reproduced in your children’s lives.

I guess today’s lesson was written by me and for me. But I wish you worry-free days, Girlfriend, filled with peace and joy.