I’m reading the book Fearless,
by Suzanne D. Williams, which has some helpful and encouraging thoughts in
regards to fear. She points out that Philippians 3:13 calls us to forget (no
longer care for) those things that lie behind. “Allowing the cares of life, in
this case the fear, to operate in my mind causes any seed of God’s Word planted
in my heart to never do what it was planted to do… It is God’s will that ‘not a
trace’ of the memory of this fear remain. Instead, we remember the power of the
Lord, which brings our deliverance” (44). She urges readers to lay hold of
these verses:
Isaiah 41:12-13 (ESV)- “You shall
seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them; those who war
against you shall be as nothing at all. For I, the Lord your God, hold your
right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you.’”
Isaiah 26:13-14- “O Lord our God,
other lords besides You have ruled over us, but Your name alone we bring to
remembrance. They are dead, they will not live; they are shades, they will not
arise; to that end You have visited them with destruction and wiped out all
remembrance of them.”
It’s amazing how fears seem to take on a life of their own—a
family member doesn’t call at the designated time, and suddenly they “must be”
at death’s doorstep; a boss criticizes you so he “must be” planning to fire
you; and so on. If all our fears came true, the world would have exploded long
ago.
Why do we let our fallen imaginations have more power over
us than God’s Word? The past and the future are not living beings. Whatever we
remember and whatever we can imagine have no real power. God dwells with us in
His eternal present. As we live in His presence, and because of His power and
love, we have nothing to fear. And yet many of us live quite fearfully. We live
in a culture of anxiety, and we try to medicate the symptoms without addressing
the root problem. At heart, we are not trusting God to be God. We have set
ourselves on the throne, desiring to be in control but lacking the ability to
control anything.
I’m not trying to point fingers at anyone but myself. I would
love to blame physiology, sociology, or psychology, but mostly it is bad
theology. My thoughts don’t line up with what I say I believe about God. Either
He is in control, or He’s not omnipotent. Either He knows the future better
than I do, or He’s not omniscient. Either He’s at work all around me in ways I
can’t begin to comprehend, or He’s not omnipresent. Who am I to worry whether
He’ll take care of my problems?
“God, did you know that…?” -I know.
“But what about…?” -I’m
taking care of it.
“But the deadline is…” -My
timing is perfect.
“OK, so what can I do?” -Just
rest, child.
“He who keeps you will
not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord
is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand” (Psalm 121:3b-5).
For more on this subject, check out- http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/use-anxiety-to-your-advantage
© 2016 Dawn Rutan.
