Your Advantage!

I had a lot of time to think last week as we spent a good portion of Thursday and Friday in the car on the road!  On Thursday I had a six-month checkup with my doctor in Morrisville.  So, we meandered down highway 55 until we got to the growing town of Apex and from there traversed to Cary and then into Morrisville.  Once in Morrisville we stopped to visit our oldest daughter Jamie where she and Piper planned to spend some quality mother-daughter time while I went off to the doctor and then a haircut.  On Friday the youngest member of our household had a Vet appointment and we made another drive into Morrisville and Fiver’s Veterinary Clinic.

On the way home from Jamie’s on Thursday we drove through the Research Triangle (North Carolina’s growing Silicon Valley) and found ourselves in the middle of stop and go traffic while the various companies disgorged their workers for the day.  Therefore, there wasn’t much to do but think!  And what kept coming to mind was the thought of FEAR and how it seems to be running rampant on the TV, Internet and radio.

It seems like our society today thrives on FEAR.  With the recent shooting at the school in Florida I have been amazed at all the reactions of FEAR that continually dominate the news. I wouldn’t necessarily consider myself a pro-gun activist, but it looks pretty obvious to me that most people seem to be missing what really happened in Florida and how it could and should have been avoided with all the missed opportunities presented to local and federal authorities previous to the event.

Upon first hearing of the shooting, I mentioned to my wife that we were probably going to hear the normal onslaught of people calling for more gun restrictions and regulations… even before the cause of the horrifying event was fully investigated.  And you know… I was right!

John Gill in his commentary on 2 Timothy 1:7 states that FEAR is “A pusillanimous spirit so as to be afraid of men or devils, of what they will say or do, and so as to be discouraged in, sink under or be deterred from the work of the Lord… such a spirit is not the work of the Lord, and such a FEAR brings a snare.”  I admit that I had to look up that long funny looking word “pusillanimous” as I had never heard it before.  The Oxford Dictionary defines it as “showing a lack of courage or determination.”

That explanations gave me a greater insight into what FEAR does to an individual who yields to its deceptive tentacles!  It quickly robs the person’s confidence, courage and determination which unwittingly allows them to fall into the snares of confusion, unbridled emotions and a reasoning that is continually distanced from God’s way and God’s Word.

For example, while in the midst of the stop and go traffic on Thursday there came a moment when the cars ahead of us suddenly began to accelerate forward.  So, with a unspoken thought of “finally!” I hit the gas and turned to smile at Piper sitting next to me for an instant when I caught a reflection of bright red lights from my peripheral vision.  It all happened so fast as I turned forward, jammed on the breaks and reached out to hold back my wife whose head seemed to be on a collision course with the dash!

Once the whirlwind of activity died down, I found myself instantly concerned with what could have happened to Piper, began to belittle myself for not paying enough attention to my driving and drifted off into the endless negative scenarios of the “What ifs!”  What if I hit the car in front of me… What if the car behind me ran into us… What if Piper hit the dash, would she have survived a smack like that… What if… What if…  The ugly odor of FEAR was trying it’s best to make its presence known in our car!  But thank God that the still small voice inside of me raised up and screamed in my head, “STOP!”

Once I heard that familiar voice I immediately shifted from anxiety to vocal praise and thanksgiving that NONE of those “What ifs!” happened and that we were safe and sound!  So, with traffic still at a standstill following our abrupt stop, I took a deep breath, put a smile on my face and leaned over and readjusted the chest strap on Piper’s seatbelt that I had been putting under her arm so that it would not choke her when she was weak and leaned over.

With that all complete I decided that we were just going to give God the glory and thank Him that He kept us safe and away from potential injury as well as from the disparaging scourge of the “What ifs!”  Have you ever been there?  FEAR yields to our emotions and not to our faith!  During my Bible study time over the last two days I noticed that the last three letters of the word FEAR is “EAR.”  And realized that a response or reaction of FEAR in the situations of our daily lives unwittingly causes one to turn their EARS to the wrong voice and therefore to the wrong action or path.

Like I have mentioned in past blogs, the outcome to our life actions all depend on how and what we choose to listen to… with the EAR of the world and its wisdom, or with the EAR of faith in God, His Word and His Wisdom.

FEAR is not a trivial matter.  It is one of the most powerful and deceptive tools of the enemy of our souls… and it is out there everywhere we go.  The GOOD NEWS is that as Christians, we do not have to fall captive to its clutches!  “For God has not given us the spirit of FEAR, but of POWER, and of LOVE, and of a SOUND MIND!”  (2 Timothy 1:7 MKJV)

You and I have what it takes to defeat FEAR – EVERYTIME!  So, let’s do it!  Continually fill yourself up with His Word and use your faith in what you KNOW the Lord says about the situations in your life to your advantage!  Whew… I like that!  How about you?

Have a great and FEAR-LESS week, and as you do, KEEP asking yourself… “What Words of God am I expecting to use to my advantage in the events of my life today?”