The Fear Factor is not just a television show. Fear is a common factor of life in our world, a broken world filled with broken people who seem to live at the mercy of their fears. We worry about things big and small, important things as well as silly things. We are often afraid of what might happen and then worry that other things will never happen. Worry makes everything seem bigger than it really is. Worry is not only wasted energy, but consuming and unhealthy in every area of life. The story is told of a man hospitalized because of anxiety. Day in and day out, the man continually pressed his ear up against the wall, listening intently. When a nurse came by, stuck her head in the room and asked what he was doing, the patient responded with Shh! motioning her over. The very patient nurse pressed her ear up against the wall and listened for a long time. Finally, the nurse said, I cant hear a thing! Alarmed, the man whispered, I know. Its been like that all day! Worry fits this world, but worry does not fit the picture of a victorious life in God. And nothing will rob you of joy quicker than worry. God came so that we would not have to worry and yet we continue to do so. How do we win this battle with fear and worry? In Philippians 4:4, the apostle Paul tells us to choose joy and to rejoice in God. In this verse, rejoice literally means to practice joy, to take delight in and to be glad. Life often makes it impossible to be happy. Happiness is not what Paul is calling us to pursue because happiness is merely a cheap imitation of true joy. Joy is a deeply-rooted confidence that God is in control. Pauls situation, when writing this letter, makes me wonder. After all, Paul was a prisoner, awaiting trial and almost certain execution, but he still tells us to rejoice. In other words, we cant always find joy in circumstances but we can always find joy in the Lord of those circumstances. You have probably heard that statement many times and thought it was just a tired old cliché when it is really a choice of perspective and a way of life. The tense of the verb rejoice translates to keep on rejoicing and is an ongoing command and calling to obedience. In John 15:10-11 we find the promise that obedience always begins with a choice and always ends in joy. -Girlfriends in God
Posted on: Sat, 01 Feb 2014 08:01:45 +0000
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