That Would Be Something!

2 Timothy 1:7: "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear ; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." Sometimes my mind bounces around, thinking of different subjects,scripture,and ideas one right after another. I think I have mentioned adult ADD before. Right now, though, I am unusually stuck on one particular subject. Yes, it's still suffering and fear. They are subjects I have to continue with. I need to do some work here. So, I am humbly asking you to do some work on this subject with me. Fear and suffering are epidemic in our society today,and I firmly believe that to become the best witnesses we can be we need to get control of these two conditions. Something I haven't completely mastered yet. Okay, the use of the word mastered is a gross exaggeration of my experience. Honestly, I struggle with fear and an understanding of suffering way too often. So, I am going to sit on this subject a while and learn what God has to teach me. In my last post, a friend mentioned her current study at church on Max Lucado's book, "Fearless". Well, I ran straight to my favorite Christian used book store and bought it. I have always been a fan of Lucado's. He has an amazing ability to place words in just the right order to make their meaning complete, clear, and inspirational. So, here's a spoiler alert: for the next however many weeks, this blog will be a book study of sorts, reviewing what"Fearless" has to say as well as other sources,scripture, and hopefully some of your comments on fear and suffering. I'm excited to see what God has to teach us about handling our fear. I think fear and suffering go hand in hand. We fear the suffering of our family, friends, and selves. And when we suffer, fear is right there as we go through the experiences we are called to live through. Lucado calls fear "The big bully in the high school hallway." That puts a picture in your mind, doesn't it? The guy who was mean to everyone, but especially those who were 'different'. The one who wouldn't quit, and was always there to intimidate, mock, and even hurt the underdog. The one you avoided at all costs. I would love to avoid fear. To never feel it again. To be serene and calm throughout everything. But as strong as my faith is, fear is sometimes stronger. Some think that as Christians we should be immune from fear and suffering. That God should protect us from tragedy because we are His. As wonderful as that sounds, we all know it is not truth. Suffering does not leave Christians untouched. We all could make a list right now of fears or suffering we are experiencing. Many times that list is a long one. I know most of my fears have to do with friends and family. I don't necessarily fear for myself, it's those people I love for whom I fear the most. Lucado points us to the story of Jesus and His disciples in the storm. While Jesus slept, the disciples were fighting to keep their boat afloat and save the lives of everyone on it. The disciples were frightened and a bit angry. When they woke Jesus, Lucado tells us that they didn't question Jesus' strength to stop the storm, they questioned his character. Mark 4:38 tells us: "Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" Don't you care? I remember thinking those very thoughts when I was suffering. Obviously, since I am a Christian, God should protect me from fear and suffering, right? That should be part of my 'reward' for being on the 'God team'. If He really cares about me, protection from pain should be the least He can do. But Lucado reminds us that we are NOT immune to suffering. He says, "getting on board with Christ can mean getting soaked with Christ." We, as disciples can expect "rough seas and stout winds." We've all heard it said that our Enemy loves to attack believers. Sometmes it seems that the minute we 'get our act together' and start living for Christ, the sufering begins. Sometimes, it seems the more we love Christ and try to do His will, the worse the attacks become. You see, if Satan can bind Christians with fear and suffering, our energies will be put into fear and anxiety, rather than the work we can do for the Kingdom. He renders us ineffective in one fell swoop. One of the most damaging things about fear is described by Lucado as 'spiritual amnesia'. In this situation, fear makes us forget what Jesus has done for us, and how good God is. Because of what we are going through, our minds are consumed with the 'here and now'. We forget the history of our relationship with Christ - all the wonderful things He has done for us, the times He saved us from disaster, the times He got us through when nothing else could. All we can think of is His apparent lack of action and/or caring about our present suffering. We can't even get to the thoughts about 'all things working together for good'. We don't understand how He could allow this if He REALLY loved us. We can become bitter, angry people who feel deserted by our God. Not a pretty situation. I remember the last time I was consumed with fear. I felt that the person I loved did NOT deserve the suffering that was being experienced. I was scared to death, and angry this was happening. I could not even think about 'all things working together for good'. It was too painful. Thoughts of our history with Christ and all He had done for us were gone from my mind. Instead, I was filled with bitterness, anger, and frustration. I had amnesia. I am ashamed to say it took a very long time for me to remember Christ's love for us, that God's ways are not ours, and that He could (and DID) use this experience for our benefit and His glory. While Lucado says fear is not necessarily sin, it does lead to sin. In our society, we medicate fear. The medicine we use is drink, anger, withdrawal, control of others, self-starvation, drugs.....the list can go on and on. Rather than turning to our Redeemer when we feel overwhelmed, we resort to instant gratification and relief through other means. Anything to numb the fear for a while. But that's just it...for a while.....it always comes back as soon as our 'crutch' is no longer effective. Our scripture for this time from 2Timothy points out that this fear does not come from our Creator. He wants to comfort us in our fear. He wants to be our rock during suffering. But we have to let Him. We have to open our hearts and minds, and remember that He DOES care that we are getting wet in the boat. And although He may allow us to have damp (or even soaked) clothing for a time, He will dry us off and set us on our feet again. It WILL happen. We have to trust Him. Remember our history with Him. Remember where fear comes from. And remember His motive. His plan to prosper us and not to harm us. To give us hope and a future. Next time we will look at Chapter 2 and maybe 3 of "Fearless". In the meantime, it might be a good activity to write down your fears. Keep that list where you can see it this week. Share about some fears here if you feel you can. And pray that God will use this book to help us become free again. Free to live for Him without the bindings of fear. Wow. Now THAT would be something, wouldn't it?