What if...?

Fear is powerful. I struggle with it. There are so many things that can go wrong.

What if I make a mistake?
What if someone gets angry with me?
What if no one comes to church?
What if we don't have enough money?
What if my children struggle in school?
What if I have to bury another child?
What if they believe the lies about us?
What if...?

I could go on. You can add yours.

The kids in the Pacific Northwest, 2015

The Bible is full of heroes who struggled with fear. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samuel, David, and others. What good company to be in!

Lately, we have been experiencing a trial. It's one of the long-term types. I told the Lord that I really needed Him to hurry up and fix it because I was afraid. In case He wasn't already aware, I gave Him my "what if?" list. Well, I didn't just give it to Him, I chanted it, repeated it, prayed it, wrote it down for Him, and woke up at night in colds sweats bout it. What if? What if? What if?

He said:

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say,on the Lord. Psalm 27:14

Waiting is hard, really hard, but I submitted to wait like He said instead of asking Him to hurry things along. That next step, though, for me was a doozy. It's one thing to wait patiently. It's a whole other thing to wait when you are afraid. Life becomes a blur of stumbling through daily tasks. The smallest things seem impossible to accomplish. Emotions are either numbed or super intense. That is no way to live, I can tell you that.

The problem isn't that I wanted to be afraid while I was waiting. He said to be of a good courage. How could I conquer this fear that gripped me? I begged Him to show me.

He said:

Thou shat not be afraid of them: but shalt well remember what the LORD thy God did unto Pharoah, and unto all Egypt; Deuteronomy 7:18

Oh. Instead of being afraid, remember the Exodus miracles? It seemed simple enough. Pharaoh and his army with chariots and war horses breathing hard from chasing the Israelites were stopped by the pillar of cloud/fire. Moses lifted his staff. God sent a giant wind and split the sea in two. The multitude walked across on dry ground. The pillar lifted allowing Pharoah and his army to chase after them. God let the walls of water come crashing down at just the right time. The people were safe.

Manna in the wilderness. Joshua at the battle of Jericho. David and Goliath. Elijah versus the prophets of Baal.

Gradually the fear started leaving. In fact, the more I remembered the miracles recorded in the Bible, the braver and stronger I felt. Is that the "good courage" maybe? The fear was shaken. I was free!

But what if I was afraid again tomorrow?

He said:

Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Matthew 6:34 

Just do the same thing the next day, and the next day, and the next day. Keep remembering the amazing miracles of God.  They are not just stories to entertain little kids.  They are the true accounts of the acts of our Mighty God.  Believe them. Remember them.

He said:

...I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation. 1 Corinthians 7:4b

God did something in my heart as I pondered His mighty works.  He turned my fear into comfort and exceeding joy. Now, my waiting is filled with anticipation and - dare I say it? - excitement about how He is going to work out this trial.  What an amazing story this is going to be!

Patrick and Vicki Weimer in Iceland since 1999