Footprints: Worry, Fear, & The Promise
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
-2 Timothy 3:16-17
As the car drives away,
it hits me, I'm no longer in the safety net of back home...
Walking toward the place that will soon become my new home, my old "friend", worry, slithers into my head, In that moment, I hear the whisper of a snake quietly tell me, "You are mine now.."
I know what has just happened, For this isn't the first time this has happened.
The battle has begun...
The more that I try to downplay the war going on inside of me...? The closer the enemy advances.
Inside I'm YELLING... "Lord where are you!? I'm loosing!" As I'm sending the distress signal up...? I'm sinking down
The enemy comes closer, and closer, nearer, near,
He stops in front of me, with a deep glare he says to me... "I know that I can't devour you, but who will you turn to once this worry grows inside you? I dare you kid... Fight me."
In this moment I am faced with a decision... Succumb to the fear...?
...0r face Satan...
...With the Promise...
Worry...
It get's the best of us so often, doesn't it?
Stress...
It brings us to our knees in fear and anxiety while it clinically kills us slowly like a snake bite...
Doubt...
It chokes our relationship with God and causes us to drift, before we know it we forget the promises and purpose that the Lord has for our life...
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So, what does all these three things have in common?
Worry, Stress, and Doubt
All of the above are some of the most toxic venom that Satan gives us, Right before we begin to walk away from God....
Does worry, stress, or doubt apply to you?
If you are like me... Then the answer would be, Yes
For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your forefathers, which he confirmed to them by oath”
-Deuteronomy 4:31
Personally, in my life? I am a worrier... I've always struggled with worry for as long as I can remember. There seems to be SO MUCH happening, that needs to be done, and being planned, That I am TERRIFIED of something going wrong... ...Something not going the way I want it to go
Presently...? I worry about what's to come... It seems like I'm leaving behind my childhood, my "Eden", and going out into the unknown... Into the wide, wide, world... AND I'M SCARED during these times!
I am beginning my training in the Ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ and I worry that I might miss what the Lord wants me to learn...
...It's so hard to focus on the Lord's plans in front of me when I'm constantly hearing the whispers of Satan all around me...
What are the whispers of Satan...? Satan whispers worry, stress, and doubt to attempt to take your focus OFF God's promises
Worry is the act of denying the power & WISDOM of God and believing that YOU are in control and that YOU know what's best
Beneath the wreckage and stressful time around you, there IS a reason... But you HAVE to look up to find it!
Stop looking down... Look UP!
God’s timing is impeccable; unlike us, He is never too early or too late.
"My future is in your hands. Rescue me..." -Psalm 31:15
So are you in a war with worry, stress, fear, anxiety, or doubt? Let's try to get a better grasp on what's going on:
----->;; 1.) We are CURSED <;;-----
Worry, Stress, Fear, Anxiety, & Doubt...? is part of the consequences that began with Adam and Eve choosing not to trust God
It's natural to worry! But when we surrender our lives to Jesus...? There should be a heart change... In that moment you die to yourself and surrender COMPLETE control up to God.
God knows that it's natural to worry, He hasn't forgotten the fall of Adam and Eve... We shouldn't forget it either
"Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.” -Genesis 4:11-12
"What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest...." -Ecclesiastes 2:22-23
----->;; 2.) We have SHELTER! <;;-----
Although we ARE cursed with this crutch called sin, There is something else that is also true... We serve a God of love! Our God loves us ENOUGH that he has compassion and grace on us even though we deserve nothing...
"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful." Revelation 22:4-5
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." -Jesus Christ; Matthew 11:28-29
----->;; 3.) We have REST! <;;-----
Why worry...? When The God of the WHOLE universe, The God that created us all, The God knows the end of your life, WANTS TO LEAD YOU!?
HE WANT'S TO LEAD YOU! RELAX, TRUST, and KNOW that He knows what He is doing :)
"...Be still, and know that I am God." -Psalms 46:10
"I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning." -Psalm 130:5-6
"Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living." -Psalm 116: 7-9
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." --Philippians 4:6-7
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So here we are,
Only the Lord can see the entire script of our life from birth to death... Cast ALL your cares on the only one you really need, and sleep soundly KNOWING that it will be okay!
"The flipside of fearing that God won't show up is fearing that he will..." -Francis Chan
Ministry was never in my plans, but it was always in my Father's! The same goes with you! The Lord has AMAZING things planned for you... But how can one grasp the gift being offered if your hands are closed from worry, stress, fear, & doubt?
WE MUST BEGIN TO DWELL MORE ON THE PROMISE THAT GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF US, And DWELL LESS ON WHO IS IN CONTROL AND WHATS TO COME
EVERYDAY there's a war inside our hearts and minds that we fight of worry, stress, and fear. So Lord, HELP ME align to YOUR Truth and to rely on Your spirit inside me. HELP ME focus more on your promise and less on the anxiety that Satan provides!
If there is something blocking an operation,
then the doctor can't work! Same thing happens when you don't surrender your ALL to Jesus.
Never forget,
Satan will allow you to build a kingdom before he takes it...
Jesus will give you a taste of his kingdom before you enter it...
God chooses what we go through; WE choose HOW we go through it.
It's time to STAND UP not by our feet alone, But stand with the power of God's Word and Promise! Ask yourself... Who's footprints are leading you, God's? Or your own...
-Are you looking for which road to take? -Scared of the road that is in front of you?
Sometimes God's road might be so close that you might actually be staring at it... But you must first open your eyes to HIS footprints ...and not our own
Are you that person that questions the Lord from the beginning of the post...?
And as you send the distress signal up...? You're sinking down
The enemy gets closer, and closer, nearer, near,
The enemy stops in front of you, and with a deep glare he says to you... "I know that I can't devour you, but who will you turn to once this worry grows inside you? I dare you... Fight me."
But as he finishes, You look up with the courage of David and say... "I know that I'm not strong enough to defeat you alone, But that's why I never walk alone. It's not MY footprints that are doing the work... I follow the Truth, I follow the Promise, I follow the Hope, I follow my Savior, I will follow the footprints of my Lord, Jesus Christ
I dare you Satan... Fight The Truth, Fight The Promise. Fight Jesus Christ... ...I dare you."
Lyrics: Here [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvT4DoaeEwM]
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"I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:10-13
"My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him." -Psalm 62:1