Courageous Joy

Do Not Fret

“Do not fret – it only causes harm” (Ps 37:8 B)
“Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him” (Ps 37:7)

“….until our own little world is turned upside down and we are forced it live in confusion and agony like so many other people. Is it possible to rest in the Lord then? If this “do not” doesn’t work there, then it will not work anywhere. The ”do not” must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty , as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work. And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else. Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstance at all, but on your relationship with God Himself. (my emphasis)

Worrying always results in sin. . . Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way”. *My Utmost for His Highest*, Oswald Chambers; July 4th

Do not fret – it’s a command. It’s not something that GOD will magically remove from my life. I must make the deliberate, conscious choice NOT to allow my mind and spirit to “get out of joint”. I must choose to focus on His promises, His character, His faithfulness, His perspective. Some of us have been blessed with great imaginations. My parents used to say that I was too imaginative. My brothers and I had to ride a little puddle jumper plane from Manila to a town several hours away from our home in Southern Mindanao, on school breaks. If Mom and Dad were late I would have them kidnapped, tortured and killed by terrorists in 3 minutes flat. It’s been a chore for me to learn NOT to FRET (Ps 37:8b) and to BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING (Phil 4:6-7) and to CONSIDER IT ALL JOY (James 1:2-7) These verses give us clear steps to help us in our fight against fretting, anxiety, and worry.

Realize we are commanded not to allow our minds to go down these paths. TAKE EVERY THOUGHT CAPTIVE to the LORDSHIP of CHRIST. This is something we are going to have to get deliberate about.

Rest in Him (acknowledge and respect His sovereignty in our lives).

Wait for Him…as we do this we are to let our requests be made known to God with prayer and thanksgiving, recognize that trials will produce endurance and mature faith in US, that we will become adequate for every good work through enduring our trials without allowing ourselves to sink into pits of anxiety and frenzied fretting.

As we do this the very peace of God is given to us and GUARDS our HEARTS and our MINDS.

I can look back now and see God at work in many areas of my life. Truly, this “do not” has WORKED in my life. I’ve seen the choices to choose joy and not to be anxious result in rest and patience over and over in my life…through financial hardships, miscarriages, deployments, employment uncertainties, chronic pain, children’s “issues”, predicted dire outcomes of pregnancies….I’ve seen that it is possible to rest, wait and be perfected in the trial. It is possible to have a mind and heart at ease through the peace of God. It all rests, however, on obeying these commands. Choose. joy. Do not fret. Be anxious for nothing. Let your requests be made known to God. I find myself grateful for past trials as they’ve built confidence that God will carry be through any future times when I am tempted to fret, if I obey Him and respond train my mind and heart to respond as He commands.

Choosing Joy....today and tomorrow and certainly in the months to follow.