A Last Word on Fear... at least for now!

I remember an event many years ago in the late 1990’s or early 2000’s when my Section Manager tagged me to work through and complete the next year’s budget or operating expense report for our section of the machining area at Agilent Technologies.  The only catch was that we had to use a newly developed software package and spreadsheet in order to complete the project. 

By that time in my career with H.P. and then Agilent, I had become quite adept with Microsoft Excel and figured “piece of cake… right?”  Well, once I started attending the preparatory meetings with the various corporate software engineers and programmers who developed the program, I quickly ascertained that I was WAY over my head in this one! 

This was the first year that this yearly planning task was passed down from the section managers (who usually completed the project) to the process supervisors and needless to say, I had not gone solo on a project of this magnitude before.  In past years I had gathered information for different specific aspects of the spreadsheet (ie; projected wages, shop rate, material expenses, cost of our floor space, training, etc.) so I was at least familiar with it.

My first reaction when I completed the training and finally had the program downloaded to my desktop was one of panic and confusion!  It is amazing how down-on-yourself one can be when the only thing you can see in your mind’s eye is failure!  The first couple of days on the project while sitting at my desk along with a couple of other process supervisors in an open office in the middle of the machine shop with a dozen or so large milling machines accurately cutting out very precise, small electronic parts and casings did little to help my thought process!  It seemed like the deeper I’d get into the project, the more confused I would get.

But after a couple of days, I had a revolutionary thought… “Why not pray about it!”  Like dah! Right?  So, I did.  I decided that I would go for a walk amidst the beautiful landscaping and views around the large plant and have a talk with the Father.  As I walked and prayed I had the thought of another long time favorite scripture found in Philippians 4:13 where Paul declares (from a prison cell no less…) that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (EMTV)

When I returned to my desk, I can’t say that I understood anymore about the project to which I was assigned, but I definitely had that “peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, (which) shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7 EMTV).  So, with some sense of encouragement and a new resolve, I set myself to figure this thing out!

Once again, I would have to say that nothing happened right away but then one evening a few days later, as I was working on the project from home on a company laptop, I suddenly had a breakthrough moment when EVERYTHING just seemed to fall into place!  It was incredible!  It was like day and night.  After-a-while I actually had other supervisors coming to me for assistance on their area’s spreadsheets!

As I thought about all this earlier today, I realized that after all the posts that I’ve been doing on FEAR, that it was FEAR that caused my initial reaction of confusion and the sense of doom!  It is interesting to understand that FEAR presents itself in many different forms and packages throughout our lives.  Jesus makes us aware of the presence of FEAR in our lives by declaring “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they (ie; YOU) might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10 KJV)

Like I keep saying in this week’s posts, FEAR is one of, if not the most often used tool of the devil that he employs to get an inroad into our lives.  Once in the door, he will eventually use that FEAR as a way to quietly direct our daily activities.  Does that sound a little too harsh?  Well, think about how much confusion, a lack of confidence, timidity, the inability to think straight in a pressure situation or an out-and-out reaction of panic when an emergency hits, directs the first thoughts, words and actions that come to you.

Wouldn’t an immediate calm, peaceful and thoughtful consideration of your circumstances be better for you as well as for everyone else involved in the situation serve to much better direct the event?  Vincent’s Word Studies defines the phrase “sound mind” in 2 Timothy 1:7 as: “the faculty of generating it (ie; self-control) in others or in oneself.”  In other words, instead of falling into the FEAR trap, a Christian should quickly ascertain that despite what’s happening around them, that THEY have the faculty or ability to generate self-control in their actions and take their God-given authority to direct the situation… while their peace and confidence helps to generate it in others around them!

I am not sure what triggered this memory… But I just recalled a time when Piper and I were about to enter a room full of people that we didn’t necessarily know in order to make a presentation, when I paused and turned sideways, like I always did in a gentlemanly way to let Piper enter the room first…  But let me digress for a moment! 

Piper was always a very confident and outgoing individual who most always seemed to flow in the understanding of her God-given ability to be confident in just about any situation.  She never seemed to be overly concerned about what was before her when she walked into a new place… except for that day and that room!

When I turned to her in that doorway, I swung out my hand with a gallant “you first’ motion and to my surprise she just stopped!  I was a little surprised and looked up at her and she met my gaze with her patented sweet “Piper smile” and said: “No Way… You go first!”  I was a bit confused at first but quickly broke into a laugh with her knowledgeable look that said: “It is important that you be the first one to enter into this new situation… and I’m right behind you… supporting you all the way!” 

I don’t really remember what that meeting or the presentation I was to give was all about, but I definitely recall that I was a little nervous about it and that I wasn’t to be hiding behind my wife’s skirt (sort of speak...).  I do remember that everything went well though, and that my talk was well received!  I think the message here is that the abundant life that Jesus talked about in John 10:10 was to work better in this particular situation as I took the lead in directing the situation… and not my wife!

Like I said, FEAR wraps itself up in a variety of packages… but whatever the wrapper looks like, as Christians, we have the God-given authority, love and power over the situations in our lives to direct them according to the truths found in God’s Word!  Dictionary.com defines a “director” as “the person responsible for the interpretive aspects of a stage, film or television production (and in the production of our own personal lives) and is the person who supervises the integration of all elements.”

Who would you rather to be the director of your lives?  The enemy of our souls through his inroads of FEAR, or YOURSELF through the truth of God’s Word that you continually put in your heart?  That’s an easy one to answer… right?

Have a great weekend.  We are supposed to have some nice sunny weather for the next few days.  With your new understanding of FEAR and the different ways it tries to enter into your life, I expect that the days of your life will be sunny as well.