Are You Afraid....?

I recently received an email that gave me pause. It really spoke to me so I wanted to share it with everyone. God talks to us in all ways---we just have to be open to hear it!

Have you noticed how much of your life gravitates toward fear?

Why?

To the world, the events and circumstances of life appear random and disconnected. Life lives hopping from one unknown dot to the next. And amidst all that jumping, each time you land, your foot finds a puddle of fear.

But all those random, seemingly disconnected dots scattered throughout life, God sees as a straight line pointing you toward Christ.

Do you remember the story in the bible where a few of the disciples--seasoned fishermen as they were--struggled in their boat to make it through a violent sea storm? You and I would probably be awash in fear, but not these men. For them, a stormy night on the water served as just another day at the job.

But what is surprising is the fear they expressed in seeing Jesus walking on the water in the midst of the storm. Yes, I imagine seeing someone walking on the water would stir up some concern, but this was Jesus, the One who taught them and walked with them, the One whom these men knew.

Yet, they were still afraid. The experience of the disciples, and how they responded to seeing Jesus in the middle of their uncertainty, serves to illustrate a greater spiritual point.

We expect Jesus to deliver us from our trials, but never expect to see Him in the midst of our trials. Honestly, at our worst moments, we prefer to forgo seeing Jesus in the middle of our muddle. We just want Him to patch up the holes and make everything better.

I guess this follows the logic that says if Jesus is down in the mud with you, how can you expect Him to save you? To see Jesus in the midst of the storm conjures up fear, because how can you expect Him to deliver you from what He Himself is standing in?

There is a belief-system that prefers to lay the blame for any personal discomfort at the feet of Satan, because doing so allows you to explain the reason behind your distress. After all, he is out to steal, kill, and destroy your life. Ironically, this fact alone brings you a sense of comfort as to why the trial exists in the first place.

But nothing falls into your life without first falling through the hands of God. Before you can deal with the trail or tribulation, you must deal with the fact that God is permitting something He easily could have prevented.

But why does a loving God do such a thing? Doesn't it make more sense that God would prevent the trial or suffering instead of permitting it?

For this answer, we need the end of the story. With the disciples terrified at the sight of Jesus walking on the water, Christ said to them, "It is I, do not be afraid." And when the disciples willingly invited Jesus inside the boat, immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

From this story you learn that you must first receive Jesus in the midst of your trial, tribulation, or suffering in order for Him to do the deeper work in your life. The deeper work is NEVER to remove you from your suffering, (if and when He chooses to do so simply serves as secondary), but rather to carve out from your life what really hinders you most--fear.

The issue is never the storm, but rather your fear amidst the storm. The problem is never the problem. Life's problems serve as nothing more than the scalpel Jesus uses to cut away the real issues holding you back, like fear, worry, anxiety, and all the other antagonists which tie your life into knots.

So what's your story? What trial or suffering are you in? God may allow it to remain or remove it all together--that's up to Him. But I will say that no tribulation leaves your life without first doing the bidding God sent it to do. And the spiritual gremlin common in all your angst which He wants removed is fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of what could happen, fear at the loss of control. Fear. Fear. Fear. It all has to go.

Fear begins the mass exodus from your life when you receive Jesus coming toward you in the middle of your storm. Once you become content with Him sitting next to you--and not necessarily out fighting the storm--once you ultimately see the muck and grime falling into your life through His fingertips, He will gladly offer you what you want most in life: Peace.

When peace finally enters into your life and beats back fear, does which way the outcome of your trials fall really matter?

Victory isn't defined by a life absent of problems, but rather by the Life (Jesus) who stands next to you in the midst of your problems.

The One standing next to you isn't a bit worried or fearful. Neither should you be.

--David