Not Now, Lord - It's Too Scary

One of my business clients kicked my butt this morning.  Ok, she’s much more than a client.  She is one I have come to call a friend and I appreciate her authentic call to ministry.  She posted a blog entry today (assisted by her virtual assistant from www.orcvirtual.com, me) that moved me to action. 

First, I want to invite you to read her blog entry and then come back to mine.  Go ahead…I’ll be here when you get back….go….www.vgladding.blogspot.com

So what did you think?  As I mentioned, I was moved to action.  The Lord has been nudging me to do something all week long and I put it off.  I’ll be brutally honest as to why I up it off.  I was scared and did not want to confront the possible outcome.  Yes, I said it.  I was scared of something that may or may not have occurred as a result of my action.

Do I make the pot of coffee this morning knowing full well that something could go wrong?  The pot could break, coffee will spill everywhere, the cat gets burned by the hot water and I cut myself on the glass, and then run to the hospital for stitches.  Meanwhile the coffee pot is still on and the grounds are now all over the burner plate, filling the house with the ‘wonderful’ aroma of burnt coffee, and then someone hits me on the way back from the hospital and of course it starts to rain so we’re all wet…the list of possibilities is endless.  It’s just a lot safer for me to not make the coffee this morning.

So maybe that’s a little far-fetched; but I use it to make a point.  If fear of a possible negative outcome prevents you from doing the thing you KNOW you should be doing, then that fear is put there by someone other than God; someone who doesn’t want you to do it.  But listen to your hearts’ prompting.

My Dad has wonderful advice about situations where we need to act but are afraid to or our reaction is out of anger and may be made too quickly with dangerous consequences.  He says to write it down.  Put it away for a day or two.  Come back to it. Chew on it if you need to, edit it, add, delete etc.  Then you’ll know when you have found the right words to say.  That is great advice whether it is homework or a letter or mere thoughts to be spoken later.  Sometimes it takes a little searching to find what you need.  I think that’s why they made ‘save as draft’ an option in email programs!  Just don’t hit ‘send’ before you are actually ready!

I have iTunes on my computer.  Sometimes I want to listen to the radio portion and I want to hear classical chorale works.  There is a station for that but I can never find it on my initial scroll.  I always have to scroll down, then go back to the top and suddenly it appears half-way down the list.  I have to do a little searching before I can find what I want.  And so it is when it comes to finding the right words and way to do that which brings us a little fear.  We need to practice; we need to scroll through the options before we find the right one.

Those things that you KNOW you need to be doing and yet you are putting off…you know what I’m talking about, right?  God is bringing it to the forefront of your heart and mind just because you’re reading this and it bugs you just a little bit.  Do it.  

IF YOU ARE DISTRESED BY ANYTHING EXTERNAL, THE PAIN IS NOT DUE TO THE THING ITSELF, BUT TO YOUR ESTIMATE OF IT; AND THIS YOU HAVE THE POWER TO REVOKE AT ANY MOMENT...Marcus Aurelius. 

I Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of sound mind!

Thank you, Jesus, that we can trust you with our today and with our tomorrow and with our right here and right now.  Lord, when we feel our spirits tremble at the idea of some unknown looming threat or event, we can trust in your faithfulness.  Help us to embrace that trust so that we have no need to be afraid of uncertainty.  Help us to denounce this fear which is not from you.  Help us to turn this fear in to action...by first falling to our knees in prayer, and then following through with that which we know we must do, with the knowledge that you are always there to protect us even through the darkness when we cannot see the actual outcome.