"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope."... Romans 15:13
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Remember how, in Miracle on 34th Street, (adorable) Natalie Wood asks Kris Kringle for the magazine house she'd clipped and after not receiving it, she's in the backseat, tired, but trying to stay positive, repeating, "I believe, I believe, I believe..."?
Well, this past Monday that was me. ッ
All weekend I prayed in total faith for Tom's recovery, yet each time he called? He sounded worse. And I'd feel genuine surprise because, hey! My faith was so high. I'd watched a ton of healing testimonies lately and I was psyched. Prepared. I'd spoken aloud lots of prayers and declarations.
God has so healed me in the area of worry, especially when, years ago, I got sick of it. Often that's what it takes for deliverance in any area: we must become sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. Sick of doubting that God can change us. Sick of sin.
Anyway. By Monday night Tom's voice was so raspy I could barely understand him.
And oh my, time again to be all Natalie Wood-ish. I smiled, though. Thought of her in that backseat and then repeated, "I believe, I believe, I believe."
And truly, I did.
Oh, of course by that night my head felt tired after believing all weekend, but you know? Days of strenuous believing are totally different than the exhaustion of Worried Days.
I mean, worry can:
Make us sick.
Paralyze us, (rather like zombies).
Color our perspective dark. Ugly.
Weaken us.
Make us hopeless. Afraid. Sorry examples.
And God cannot bless our worry. Certainly can't condone it. But He strengthens us in our believing! Give Him real faith and He'll mold that into something strong to support us.
Last night I went to bed and thought, "Good gracious, Debra. This 2020 will mark the 50th year since you met Jesus. Oh, how much work He's sown into you!
But oh dear, how much farther along could you be if you'd been more willing to change? Skipped the excuses? The procrastination?" Gulp.
Fifty years in the backseat of this crazy journey with Jesus. Given all that time and those adventures? Yeah, I should be father along, but oh how grateful I am that not once has He yanked open the door and walked away in frustration.
Nor will He as long as I keep trusting. Believing.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." ...Philippians 4:6,7
"Worry implies we don't trust that God is quite big enough." ---Francis Chan
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Speaking of making excuses.....
Oh! I've watched hundreds of Youtube videos, but one of the best ones, ever? This one. Watch it and all your excuses will fly away, whether you're black or white. ツ
Larry Elder--wish I'd met him sooner.
(If you only have 4 or so minutes, start at 11:00, ok?)
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How's Tom feeling? So much better. Thanks again for your prayers!
"For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." ... Matthew 6:14,15
It is wonderful to read that Tom is much better. i am so glad that your believing heart has been blessed Debra.
ReplyDeleteI am a worrier. Just ask anyone who knows me. My sister said I was was born worrying. I remember as a child being very anxious. I have overcome much of it in my adult life, through prayer and reading and believing the Word of the Lord, but I still suffer from anxiety. And that's okay. I have mostly come to terms with it. God made me the way I am. He knows my heart and how I try daily to overcome it. Maybe I'm this way to remind me to lean on Him and not myself. I don't know. I know losing my parents at a fairly young age didn't help.
Thank you for sharing your heart with us Debra. I will continue to pray for a full recovery for Tom.
Blessings,
Betsy
Oh Betsy! I hope my post made it clear that God has helped me overcome worry. Maybe I should add that. I will never, ever settle for any kind of weakness, though, and I will keep saying He is healing me of whatever it may be that I'm facing. That's just who I am. Anyway, I'm gonna go back and add that now, so thanks! Blessings, Debra
ReplyDeleteSo glad to hear that your Tom is home and feeling better. And I loved this post. I'm not really a worrier but your words apply to any area we struggle in. I can be selfish and judgmental and oh, so many other not-Godly things and I want to have your attitude of daily, hourly, giving those things to Jesus and turning toward His qualities. You're always a blessing, Debra. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSo happy to hear that Tom is feeling better. I can not tell you how much I love reading your posts - sometimes even just a sentence or two stand out and I'm like wow, that's so true (talking about how God can not bless our worry and certainly doesn't condone it). Thank you for your faithfulness to the blog with sharing like you do!
ReplyDeleteI might be like Betsy--a born worrier--but I truly want to be able to hand everything and anything, lock/stock/and barrel over to God! I think as I "mature" (ya know I'm officially closer to 70 than 60), and as God brings me through difficulties, my worry ends up being momentary, rather than drawn out. He has helped me so much! I've also learned that I have to go straight to my favorite Bible verses when worry lurks near. That helps me get my mind on the Lord instead of my worries. Debra, I, too appreciate how real your posts are as you share your life with all of us. Praising God Tom is home and hoping and praying that this will be a wonderful weekend for your family! Love to you all!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Deb! Hadn't heard from you in awhile and I so appreciated your comments about Tom and the relevancy of this post. Again, thank-you! (And as always, I love following your Facebook posts and the way they show a life well-lived--yours, my friend. <3
ReplyDeleteDebi--my other encourager! Thank-you for your faithfulness in reading here. You are always appreciated and I'm glad you enjoy reading my posts.
Pam-- so true! One lovely thing about growing older is the way--if we've let God work on us--so much tends to be 'like water off a duck's back' rather than some heavy thing we struggle with for days. How wonderful to renew our minds with the Word,right?
Thanks so much, Everyone! Blessings, Debra