Jodi Foster starred a popular movie entitled "Panic Room." She finds herself trapped in a panic room in her house which was designed to protect her from any outside threats. However, there came a point in the movie when she needed to confront a certain threat head-on.
This typifies the tragic life of many Christians. We are trapped in our own form of panic rooms as we worry incessantly and are filled with anxiety over potential threats to our well-being. These panic rooms are not actual rooms in our homes, but a room inside our heart where we retreat in order to panic. We panic and worry about many things in our panic rooms, and the tragedy is that we refuse to allow Jesus Christ to come in to these panic rooms. We refuse to allow Jesus Christ, who is our peace (Eph. 2:14)and the Prince of Peace to come into our panic rooms. We have difficulty listening to Jesus' words, "Do not be afraid..." because the potential threats to our well-being or our children's well-being are so great.
The Bible tells us that in Christ, we can have a peace that surpasses all understanding, meaning that we can have peace even when perplexed, overwhelmed and stressed out. However the pathway to peace is not simply prayer, but a certain type of prayer. It is a prayer that is comprised of praise and thanksgiving to God. The assurance of God's Word is that prayers of praise in the midst of anxiety will lead to a peace which surpasses understanding. This is recorded in the Bible in the book of Philippians 4:4-7.
So our lack of praise to God amdist our anxiety results in a lack of peace amidst life's stressors. But the next question is what keeps us from praising God amidst our anxiety? For me, it is control. Ironically, although I feel out of control sometimes, I still want it and refuse to relinquish something I don't really have. This is just another form of pride in my life. My pride prevents my praise and thereby prohibits any sense of peace.
What are you anxious or stressed about today? What keeps you from practicing praise amdist your anxiety and stress? I'd love to hear from you.
Beams Away!
Brett - I agree that control is a big issue for us. The old Keswick revival movement said, "Let go, Let God!" It sounds simple, yet very hard. What gets in the way for us is us. It's easier for us to talk about giving God control that letting Him have control. The key for me is "giving thanks" in and for every thing - again not easy but it does help me mentally to remember who really is in control. Ed Pollasch
ReplyDeleteThe issue of control is real. I desire to be as fully aware as I can be, hopefully functioning with grace and energy in my present surroundings. That's where God has placed me, and it means being somewhat "in control". However, our present surroundings are expanding exponentially and have become nearly world-encompassing. What a blessing, and how overwhelming! There really is no choice to be in control, it's an impossibility. I'll settle for Competent and Humbly Flexible. Dear Lord, may I be reminded of that regularly!
ReplyDeleteI agree, Brett, fear is tangled up with worry. And fear is not of the Lord - I KNOW that. Ed, giving thanks and praying incessantly, good reminders for letting the fear and worry go. Crowd out the negative pull-downers with praise!!!
I'm reminded of an analogy to leave the top A1 priority for God -- for those who follow the Franklin method of prioritizing daily tasks. I think it was Peter Reese, CrossPoint in the 90's, who said that.
Blessings!