Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you."
"What if I get sick? What if my kids get sick? What if I lose my job, or my house, or my car?" Do you ever find yourself asking these questions? I have, and I do, and what usually happens is that I continue to take that "what if" down a path to a place that is so far from where I am in the moment that I have created a fantastic fictional thriller. At times, it's a horror flick and other times I allow it to get so outrageous that it could be an award winning comedy. Regardless, my point is that when we allow our minds to start on that train of thought it often snowballs into a place that the fear of what "might" happen paralyzes us.
I share this because recently, for whatever reason, I've found myself much too often in the place of creating scenarios that may or may not ever happen. I remember being the midst of an extremely difficult place during my separation and calling a wise and dear friend. In a complete panic, I reeled off everything that I just KNEW was going to happen because of one decision that was made. In less than one minute, I must have exhausted her because she immediately interrupted me (and I remember because it is the ONLY time in 3 years that I ever remember her interrupting me) and said, "Laura - What do you know today?" I stopped and said, "What? What do you mean what do I know today?" She responded, "Just what I asked you. What do you know today?" So, I began to list what I knew in that moment about my circumstances. Anytime I attempted to throw in a "but, this..." she stopped me and said, "No- What do you know today?" After I finished listing what I KNEW about my circumstances in that moment, she said, "Ok. That is what you know today and that is all that you need to know today. God will reveal to you what you need to know tomorrow, well, tomorrow." WOW - Really? I don't know about you, but that is such a hard thing for me to grasp at times, because I am prideful enough to let Him know what I think I know on some things. (Ashamedly, too many things) Don't you love the fact that we can make God laugh?
As I have grown to better understand the character of my Shepherd, I have allowed those 5 words to settle into my soul. I now understand why my friend stopped me as quickly as she could from continuing to play out so many unknown scenarios. Because of the truth that she so tenderly spoke into my life that day, I have had the honor and privilege of speaking those exact words into the circumstances of others, providing the strength of knowing that God's got it. How awesome that we have a God who loves us so personally, that regardless of where we are in the moment, when we turn our thoughts to Him, He reveals to us just what we need to know it that moment, that circumstance or that day!?!? I don't know about you, but that is GOOD NEWS to me!
So, what do I know today? Today I know that I am healthy. Today I have 2 healthy children. I have a home, a job and a car. I don't know what God will reveal to me tomorrow as it relates to those or any other circumstances in my life, but for today I'm okay with what I know. More importantly, I know that no matter how crazy the story is that I concoct, my God is bigger. God has a better view than I. Re-focusing and remembering that allows me to rest in the truth that He reveals only what I need to know to get through each day and each circumstance as it arises. Also, I can rest assured, that my Lord, my Shepherd will not guide me any further than He intends in the moment.
If any of you, as you read this, are allowing your mind to race with the "what ifs" consider this my firm but loving and gentle interruption -- "Stop, sweet friend, and tell me what you know today."
Trust that God's got it and let Him take care of the details.
2 Corinthians 10:5 "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."
No comments:
Post a Comment