This picture I am sharing today was taken on a Sunday last July through our Ring camera. We were getting ready to leave the town of Bluffton, Indiana, which is 20 miles east of our home. This is where we attend church and as we were leaving to head home…it became very dark. Storm clouds were looming over us and before we got to the edge of town…raindrops began falling. Wondering what it was doing at home, I pulled up our Ring app on my phone and took this picture. I was so struck at how calm it appeared to be at home…but how perilous it looked to the east…where we were currently.
Every time I look at this picture, I think about how much it is like our life. When we were in the storm…it was hard to see that there was light anywhere around us…but I realized from the picture that everything was fine just 20 miles away. But once we were back home and could look at the storm from the other direction…I could either enjoy the calmness around me…or I could sit and worry that the storm I knew was in the distance…might come my way.
Fear. It can paralyze us when we are in the midst of a life-storm…and it can also consume us if we are always concerned about what “might” happen. I think this past year has brought fear to the surface in many lives. Fear when we were all suddenly thrown into a new “normal” that didn’t seem normal at all. Fear when loved ones became ill…fear of lost jobs…fear of not being able to see family and friends.
I think there comes a time though, when we need to stop allowing those fears to control our every move. Isaiah 41:10 in the version The Message says, “Don’t panic. I’m with you. There’s no need to fear for I’m your God. I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you. I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.” What reassuring words from our Heavenly Father. With Him…even if there is a storm brewing all around us…there is no need for fear because He has a firm grip on us. With Him…during those times when everything is calm…there is no need to fear what “might” happen tomorrow…because again, He has a firm grip on us.
Yesterday in church, we sang the song, No Longer a Slave. I’ve heard this song many times…but it sure hit home when I sang the words, “I’m no longer a slave to fear. I am a child of God.” If we really believe those words, then fear should no longer control us since we are a member of God’s family. Having Him as our Father, should be all we need to face whatever life brings our way.
Does fear have you in its grip today? If so…why not reach out to your Heavenly Father. He will give you strength. He will hold you steady. And remember…His grip is one which stems from love and care…not from fear of our today or tomorrow.
Don’t forget, if you would like to join me in my study of the book of James, you can find my YouTube channel, Image Seeker, at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0szlDSgNBtFuzzNLBWzwMA. I posted the third teaching video this morning…so check it out and learn how we should be doers…not just a hearers!
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