There is never a good time to be sick…but there are times when being out of commission can create added difficulties. These past couple of weeks have done just that. I had not put into my schedule to start 2020 being too sick to do much of anything…so when that is where I found myself…I began to feel a little panicky. Ok…maybe a lot panicky.
The first of every year brings with it added office responsibilities for me because the government expects to receive end of the month forms…end of the quarter forms…end of the year forms…and then of course employees expect to receive W-2 forms so they can get their taxes done. Neither the government nor the employees are going to let me off the hook, even if I have a signed doctor’s slip saying I was under the weather. Add to that the fact that I have some things planned this month that require all of the above work be completed even earlier than normal…and I began to feel my pulse quicken as I laid in a recliner with little to no energy. Sure…I knew that somehow everything would get done, but after a while I realized I sure didn’t like the stressed-out mode I was falling into.
At some point, I heard that voice in my head ask, how big is your God, LuAnn? Is any of this a surprise to Him? Is He wringing His hands wondering how in the world everything is going to get accomplished? Of course I knew the answer to each of these questions…I just had to decide whether I was going to believe those answers and trust Him to do what He has promised to do…which is walk with me every step of the way…giving me whatever I need at the time I need it.
I wish I could now tell you that all of my tasks have been completed…but they have not. I have been able to work for short periods this past week and have gotten more done than expected…for which I am very thankful. I keep reminding myself that I serve a God who is more powerful than I can even imagine and that in His time, everything will be completed.
Why is it often so easy to fall into the panic mode, instead of automatically putting our trust in our heavenly Father? The reason I am asking this today is because, unfortunately, I often hear myself and other Christians talking about our problems as if there is no hope. As if what will be will be, and nothing or no one can make any difference. We talk with such despair; lamenting about the doom and gloom of our current situation and the days ahead and I just wonder what others, especially non-Christians, are thinking. If I wasn’t saved and I heard a professing follower of Christ moaning and whining about their situation, I doubt I would want what they have. If our God isn’t powerful enough to handle our problems, there will be no reason for them to think He could handle theirs.
I wonder what we are missing out on when we don’t allow God to handle any and all situations in which we find ourselves. What misery could be avoided if, as difficulties or concerns arose, we immediately gave it over to Him and let Him “take the wheel” as the popular song says? Would we have fewer ulcers? Would we retain more hair on our head? And most importantly, would we be a better example of God’s power and grace to those with whom we come in contact?
I love these words: “Lord, I crawled across the barrenness to you with my empty cup, uncertain in asking for any small drop of refreshment. If only I had known you better, I’d have come running with a bucket.” Do we not realize how big and powerful our God is, because we don’t know Him very well? Does our knowledge of Him come from the children’s stories that we heard growing up, or are we, as adults, really thirsty to absorb any insight we can of the One who created us? It’s that hunger for Him that will help us realize His size, His power, and His ability to handle ANY detour that comes our way.
I know that on the spectrum of problems, my situation these past couple of weeks has been pretty minor. But if I can’t trust Him for the smaller “hiccups” of life…I probably won’t immediately trust Him with the bigger times of crises either.
Are you going through a time in your life when you are living in the “panic mode”? Are you convinced that nothing will ever change? I want to urge you today to listen to that voice in your head that is asking, how big is your God? I am confident that like me, you know the answer to that question. You just have to decide whether you will believe the answer and put your trust in Him to do exactly as He has promised.
“How great is our Lord! His power is absolute!
His understanding is beyond comprehension!”
His understanding is beyond comprehension!”
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