This weekend we sat on the 2nd floor of our deck to watch a family of bears brush by our cabin steps, sniff our garbage, and slip in between our cars. While some family members ran outside to see this rare occurrence, others ran inside to hide. So naturally we wrote a song called, "bear attack". Later I asked the cabin manager if there have ever been any REAL attacks out there and she said only one in about 20 years. I questioned further. Apparently, this very intelligent women decided to feed the bears (really? don't ever do this, k?)... and unfortunately ran out of food during this process. Oops. As she was walking (walking????) away the bear jumps on her back and attacks. I think she survived and, I hope, learned a good lesson. But don't go blaming the bear either... if you were that hungry you may very well do the same thing! If we let that one instance stop us from ever going back to the wilderness, we'd be missing out on so much.
As you probably know by now, the movie "Soul Surfer" is about a girl named Bethany Hamilton who gets her arm taken off by a shark while surfing. (This movie is excellent, please watch!!!) Most people would call this a "shark attack", duh. The shark probably wasn't seeking to attack, but was just a little hungry (like our fuzzy friend). The coolest thing about Bethany is that this event did not stop her from getting back in the water. She didn't allow the attack to paralyze her from the thing she enjoyed most in the world. In fact, that wasn't even an issue for her. Something the enemy could have easily used as an obstruction in her life was conquered with the courage and strength of the Lord. She faced her troubles head on and not only lives in that freedom, but inspires others to do so!
I've spoken to a lot of people recently who have experienced some sort of tragic event. Typically a steady stream of anxiousness follows. Maybe you haven't had to encounter pain; but most likely you've seen it, heard it or read about it. Movies and media can also feed into the enemy's ploy to paralyze God's kids. Fear is real, it's an epidemic, and it's a silent disease that's taking over the body of Christ. The problem is... most of us think it's "normal" to worry or stress because of the world's natural reaction to problems. Truth is: this is not how we are meant to live and I will not sit back and watch His children be consumed and frozen by the enemy's deception any longer! None of us should; it's time to point out the lies, shatter them with God's truth and live in FREEDOM. Don't we all want to see this in our lives and in those around us? Can you imagine what we would be capable of as believers if there was absolutely NOTHING holding us back???
I used to have the most random thoughts. I'd be walking down the stairs and something would say, "you are going to trip". Or I'd be driving through the mountains and I'd hear, "you are going to fall off the cliff." Or I'd be scared someone I loved would get hurt or die. If you're constantly succumbing to these lies, then you probably find yourself a bit edgy. Always expecting something bad to happen. Always in a state of panic... finding it hard to breathe at times.
Well, first of all we need to go to the root and REBUKE the spirit of fear. IT DOES NOT BELONG IN YOU. Secondly, we need to capture each of those fearful thoughts when they come and IMMEDIATELY turn them over to God without dwelling in them. Now, when those random thoughts come in... I rebuke them and pray the opposite. Just like that, I'm done... no need to fear or worry because it's now in God's hands. Thirdly, I finally realized how much fear was coming from things that I watched. So, I'd recommend not watching MOST t.v. and cutting out movies that instill some sort of fear in you.
Experiment: Watch Television for an hour and record the negative words you hear such as- death, sickness, hate, anger, abuse, tragedy, etc etc. Record the negative tones, screaming, loud noises (gun shots), etc. Then compare all of this with the positive things you hear and see. You might be amazed at how much fear is entering our homes through the tube (sometimes just being on in the background).
Today I was talking with a friend of mine whose son died a few weeks ago. She's still painfully walking through the loss, and probably will be for a little while. She told me that after He died, she feared the worst possible scenario for His soul. My friend was almost paralyzed by this fear... until she began to pray. Gutted, she asked for a peace beyond comprehension. Before, during and after the funeral she said that the Holy Spirit came over her and consumed her with His love. She felt pure peace, pure love and pure joy in those moments KNOWING that it had to be God. She is now a walking testimony of God's power in and through His kids. Her natural "earthly" tendency would be to anticipate tragedy again, but not now! Now... she's so full of God's supernatural strength and courage that she says she could tell anyone about the love of Christ (without fear)!
I recently had a friend tell say to me, "man, i'll be glad when we are in heaven and don't have to worry anymore." To that I simply replied... "we don't have to." I know what He was meaning but truly... we have countless opportunities to worry and DO have the option of tapping into His wealth of peace, truth, joy and rest instead. Remember: we are the intersection of heaven and earth. Just like mentioned yesterday, we have the awesome advantage of walking in that spiritual kingdom right now. If you're reading this and still don't quite understand take a look at the gospels when He talks about His kingdom and begin asking for God to reveal the truth and make it very real to you. Our heavenly Dad desires for us to be walking in complete freedom so we can fully experience His joy and peace in the midst of the chaos of the world. It is possible. Don't accept the enemy's cheap counterfeit in place of God's authenticity for you.
B90: (Psalm 78- 101:8) Again, David had plenty of opportunities to worry. All throughout his life he was a target. David could have been overcome by this fear and hid out in a cave the rest of his life, but David never stopped trusting or verbalizing His praise. He stepped out on faith countless times and found an endless amount of refuge in His protector. David knew what it was like to choose hope in hopeless situations and find freedom on the other side. To dwell means : To live as a resident; reside. Or to exist in a given place or state. Don't know about you, but I don't want to just visit the refuge of the Lord and live in a state of panic or fearful anticipation the rest of the time. I want to DWELL in that place, with HIM.
"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. YOU WILL NOT FEAR the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day; nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. Because you have made the Lord your DWELLING PLACE- the Most High, who is my refuge- no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways." Ps. 91:1-11
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