Darkness

I am blessed to get to see my grandchildren often....but the times are few between that they spend the night...Last night was one of them. We had Sam (7 months) and his brother Blake (4) just for the night. Mom and Dad got to take advantage of "Restaurant Week"....an annual Houston event that I had never heard of until the girls told me about it. Decided if we (Mel and I) were going to baby sit then might as well give them the whole night off... we swam...and had nuggets by the pool...then gave them a warm bath...and it was bedtime before we knew it. All was well until a little after midnight....Blake woke up scared....the light in the hall and adjoining bathroom were on, the door opened....but still...the house was quiet, the lights downstairs were off...and there is something about not being in your own spot that is a little disconcerting. (And....I think the wake may have originated from a need for a bathroom run.) But I hopped up loved on him, visited quietly in the den, (as they were sleeping in the same room) escorted him back to his bed...rubbed his back a minute and he was once again bedded down in calmness.

Isn't that what God does to us when we find ourselves in an unfamiliar spot of darkness. He meets us just where we are: "in the dark"... ...God comforts us, assures us of his presence, holds us til we have overcome the jolt of fear, and then walks us back into the place where we started and again equips us the security and confidence that we are safely in this arms of grace. And there we are amerced in "trust"....holding on to "faith".

Fear is something that just jumps through your skin and right into your mind. And before we know it, it can catch us off guard and can completely take over the driving mechanism of our brain and completely derail any positive and secure thoughts that have presided int he past. You have been there ...so have I...a time when all of the sudden something hits unexpectedly that pulls us from familiar territory....and we are bolted into an unknown darkness.

" Fear is a vital response to physical and emotional danger-if we couldn't feel it, we couldn't protect ourselves from legitimate threats. But often we fear situations that are in no way life-or-death, and thus hang back for no good reason. Traumas or bad experiences can trigger a fear response within us that is hard to quell. Yet exposing ourselves to our personal demons is the best way to move past them."
http://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/fear

I read this explanation of fear...and thought two things:

1) fear is brought on my outside situations
If fear is brought on by outside situations then it seems like the best way to counter it is with inside retaliation...

2) fear is best dealt with by facing it
It is hard to fight something you can not see are not willing to identify and acknowledge

It all comes back to God....outside situations are always going to be upon us...constantly changing. But what I seem to be learning...is a lesson that holds true no matter what the situation...it is based on the simple question of "How big is my God?" Is he big enough to protect me, big enough to guide me, big enough to know how to handle a crisis, big enough to carry me when my knees just grow weak, big enough to hold on to me when the winds of a storm are blowing through? The lesson that is all encompassing is...."YES" and therein lies what should be my response of "FAITH" when "fear" busts through the doors of my life. But that takes training, and experience...and trust....a little at a time. God will prove himself worthy....he already has...we have just not chosen to accept it in full. We tip toe around it and touch it now and then and even sometimes get a grip on it and think we have got a good hold on it but then something unexpected appears and instead of holding tighter we, let go....and let fear conquer.

Ok....biblically..the word fear is mentioned 326 times in the bible..(http://www.biblegateway.com/quicksearch/?quicksearch=fear&qs_version=NIV) so God knew that it would be something that he needed to address..the Fear of God....is a healthy respect of the power and authority that dwells within Him and fear not....is such a reminder of who is on our side...whoi is fighting on our behalf...
Psalm 103:13
As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
1 John 4:18
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Last night all I had to do to comfort Blake...was to be there....for him to know my presence.... I held him tight and loved him and it was in His security and trust in me that settled him down. Fear is overwhelming at times to all of us....circumstances can seem to be greater that anything
that we are equipped to handle...and many times they really are....and when they arise, that is when we need to go running down the hall of God's grace..and find him to be present...before us...able and willing to hold us and let us hide behind the greatness of his power and authority.
We may not be able to conquer circumstances but God is surely able to conquer the fear within us that the circumstances brew.

Today if fear is gripping you....choose to get a grip on God....and hold tight to HIm...in faith...and through that faith he will give you a peace....and help you to realize that nothing is too big or too scary for God to personally handle. It is us who are holding back...we fail to identify it, we fail to address it, we fail to let go of it, we fail to flat give whatever it is that is causing us to respond in fear and insecurity back to God.

My little Blake just called out in the darkness of the night....and I could hear the fear in his voice....and I came running...because I love him to pieces and I surely don't want him to ever be scared but especially in my house. Isn't God the same way...he can hear fear in our voices when we are scared...he recognizes it in our thoughts....but until we cry out for HIm....and run to him...we remain uncomforted....and guarded...and often times paralyzed....because of it. It is only when we face it and identify and give it up to God that he can help us know that he is present and Has our back. But what I so often forget is that it is God's love shown through his son Jesus that is the ultimate crushing ball over fear...Fear has no leg to stand on, no backbone of frame and no weapons of warfare that compete with our God who loves us and is present with us on the inside no matter what the circumstances are on the outside.

So when the darkness of fear is overshadowing you....remember to turn on your light of the Lord...and with only a blink of the eye...the darkness will fade away....and God's light will reflect His love.

Dear Lord, We all get scared....and fear is an ongoing element of discontent ....help me to remember to hold tight to you when things are scary and I have let your light slip into being only a flicker. Teach me to daily trust you and to be faithful in your word, and confident of your presence. Amen

Praise God wherever you are and whatever situation He has allowed you to be in . . . His glory will shine through!

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email address: cjodeit@gmail.com
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