Henriet's Blog

The anxiety of too much. Fear Not.

Eighth in the series of Fear Not in an age of fear and anxiety.

Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”  

Mark 4:39-41, NKJV

This is too much!

Good. Everything on my list of things to do is, in some way, good, necessary or normal. Why am I stressed? During waking hours the anxiety of too much to coordinate stays in the shadows. When I get ready to fall asleep, the tyranny of the list whips up distress and my brain starts arranging the things that are left to do or organize. The more I entertain the next day's tasks or engage in figuring out how to make things work, the less I sleep. In fact, it tends to trigger adrenaline and anxiety. Believe me I know it's silly. Experience tells me the issues that keep me awake usually dissolve in the light of morning. Besides…I believe in Jesus. I talk to Him. Nothing is beyond Him. The wind and the waves obey Him…He can handle my list of things to do.

Overwhelmed by good

What am I worrying about? The truth is I have a great family, meaningful work, a worthwhile ministry,  a genuine church community, a great home, fresh eggs from our own chickens, good food to eat, loving friends, a supportive small group, a relationship with Jesus, and much more.

Jesus told His disciples:

Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.  

Matthew 6:27-34, NKJV

This is my prayer, "Jesus, please teach me to trust you fully and not to worry about anything including tomorrow. Help me to rest in you and to Fear Not. Thank you, Jesus. Amen."

#FearNot

Fear the Lord Your God Only. Fear Not.

Seventh in the series on Fear Not in an age of fear and anxiety.

You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him.

                                                          Deuteronomy 13:4, New King James Version (NKJV)

Fear Not because of God

Everyone feels fear. For most fear and anxiety occur periodically or occasionally. Over 18% of adults in the U.S. deal with anxiety disorders. In the Bible, God tells us to "Fear Not." As we look at fear and God's admonition to "fear not," it's important to realize the only antidote is God Himself. God is not telling us to not feel fear or to stop being afraid based on our own strength, ability or merit. He knows the only way is through trust in Him and His Presence. In Isaiah 41:10, God tells us to "fear not for I am with you."

Fear God only

God encourages only one fear and the Bible tells us in numerous places to practice this fear. What is this fear? Fear God! (Not fear of God). We're told in Deuteronomy 13:4, "You shall walk after (follow) the Lord your God and fear Him." God invites us to worship Him, be in awe of Him, and realize He is Sovereign over all. That's what fearing God means after all. It makes sense to fear the one who can do all things. Nothing is too hard for Him. So, if you're going to fear something, fear the God who is all powerful. Truly fearing God removes all other fear for He is Sovereign. Fear God only. Everything else, Fear Not!

#FearNot

Fear Not. Enjoy the Rewards of His Presence

Sixth in the series on Fear Not in an age of fear and anxiety.

After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”

                                                                                                              Genesis 15:1, NKJV  

You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. 

                                                                                                Psalm 16:11, NKJV

Experiencing God's Presence: Is it possible?

The short answer: Yes! God desires for everyone to come to Him and experience Him. How do we know?

• He walked and talked with Adam in the Garden of Eden. That was the original design. God instructed Adam. He made humans in His own image, male and female. He made us to have a relationship with Him. The Fall changed the relationship but not God's intent.
• He appeared to Abram, later named Abraham. See Genesis 12:7, 15:1, 17:1, for examples.
• He "spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend." Exodus 33:11, NKJV
• Jesus came to earth to rescue us and restore the relationship with God. One of Jesus' Names is Immanuel: God with us. If God didn't want us to experience Him and His Presence, why would He send Jesus personally, call Him Immanuel, and have Him live among regular people? If it was just to save us, God didn't need to do this in a personal way. He's God. He could have created a different solution if His desire wasn't to be a personal God to be experienced by us. 

How Can We Experience God?

Though I believe God can reveal Himself to anyone, a true experience with God requires a relationship with Him. (Starting the relationship means accepting and inviting Jesus into your life. One way is following these Steps to Peace with God.) Romans 10: 9, 10 NKJV tells us:

"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

Believing is the first step. Experiencing God's Presence requires a journey of spending time with God, listening to Him, praying, reading the Bible, worship, being in a community of believers, learning from others who have experienced God. One resource for the journey might be "Experiencing God" by Henry Blackaby. There are many other resources. Sometimes it requires getting our heart healed. I've been blessed by the ministry and classes of Aurora Worldwide and Elizabeth RoBless-Johnson. Sometimes working with a good Spiritual Director can help us experience God's Presence (ask me if you're interested and I'll send you some names.) 

The key to starting to experiencing His Presence is spending time in His Presence. When we show up faithfully and intentionally God will grow us and show us. God is our shield. He and His Presence is our exceedingly great reward. As God told Abram:

    “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” 

 #FearNot

Without God Fear Grows. With Him, "Fear Not!"

Fifth in the series on Fear Not in an age of fear and anxiety.

After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”

Genesis 15:1, NKJV

Too Tired to Spend Time with God?   

So often I listen to the lie in my head that I need more sleep and then fall in the trap of not spending time with God. How many years of following Jesus? Almost four decades. I know better. I do. And I fully intend to spend time with Jesus first thing… At night I pray and commit to God I'll spend time with Him in the morning. (He loves me regardless and keeps no scorecard but I know (I mean I KNOW) life is better when I sit with Jesus before rushing into my day). Back to my night prayer. I'll set my alarm and then tell God, "Wake me up earlier if you want me to spend more time with you." Satisfied with my prayer, I feel good and sleep well. Of course He wakes me early... and the negotiations start. What time is it? 5:30 am! I really need sleep. Is this God waking me? "God, do you really want me to get up now or do you want me to sleep more?" I hear "sleep" and decide I'll just pray in bed first. Zzzzzzzz

Then the alarm startles me into consciousness and I immediately know: This was a mistake. I missed out! Argh. I can't go back and undo this stupid decision. Now I only have a few minutes to be with Jesus. Why did I do this again? Surely Satan wouldn't wake me early to spend time with the LORD. Of course it was God. Duh! Then I recommit: Tomorrow I'll take the extra time, no excuses! 

With the decision to choose sleep over Jesus my anxiety and fears increase. My fear of not getting enough sleep resulted in less peace and more fear. Sometimes this pattern happens multiple times a week I end up feeling increasingly more tired and anxious (not more rested and calm!). 

Disobedience to God increases fear

My friend Ardis, a fellow blogger, sent me a link to Rick Warren's devotional on fear increasing when we refuse to obey God. Timely! Pastor Rick writes, "Fear grows every time you refuse to do what God wants you to do. Eventually, you'll feel cornered. And when fear grows, your life shrinks."

Who needs more fear? Not me. And, I've experienced when I give in to fear, it grows. Then I work to avoid fear, giving fear greater power. Fearing fear leads to greater fear. Not a good cycle!

Disobedience to God's revealed will increases fear. Why? Two reasons occur to me (there could be many more reasons than these): 

1. When we disobey God we agree with the enemy of our soul, Satan. He wants us to disobey. He wants us away from God's protective power. He seeks to isolate us so he can trap us and destroy us.
2. When we disobey God He pursues us. The Lord loves us enough to make us uncomfortable. This Holy Spirit discomfort may feel like fear but actually may be His convicting Presence to lead us back to God, obedience and blessing.

With God, "Fear Not!"

To live in peace and without the tyranny of fear, we need God. Every day. So often I surrender to the temptation to sleep more and then rush into my day on my own. The inevitable outcome includes frustration, stress and disappointment. 

The only antidote to a life of fear is a life with God. As He promised Abram (this is before God gave him his new name Abraham), "Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” God Himself is our reward. His Presence is the antidote to fear. Not work. Not His blessings. Not a ritual. Not adhering to religious rules. Just God: Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit. Time in His Presence.

What about you? Do you choose sleep over life change with God? Have you found God's Presence to be the answer to, well, everything? Do you know how to be in His Presence?

More on time with God next post.

#FearNot