Time – for Truth

Last week I was open and vulnerable with you – definitely not how I usually operate. I’m guessing you might not be that way either. I introduced the subject of suffering – in all it’s myriad forms: physical and/or emotional pain, fear (also known as worry, doubt, fretting, etc.), and so much more.

Since that post, I was blindsided by the big A: anxiety. To the point that after two days of a racing heart I wound up in the ER wondering if I had heart issues – thankfully I do not. Have you, or are you, in that place called anxiety? If so, share some words of wisdom with us. For four days now I have been confronting this enemy of the soul – with some success, as in one step forward and then two back.

But this morning when I woke up I felt the nudge to begin to seriously look at what triggers some of this. This may seem a little out there, but maybe it will encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to help you find some triggers.

During the last seven months of severe daily pain, I have weighed a lot of this journey on my sleep quality – actually the lack of it is more like it. I get up often at night and move around a lot to get comfortable. I look at the clock, calculating how much – or little – sleep I got. The nudge was: hide the clock face and don’t give in to looking at it. I’ve been doing that – because the truth is: me counting it does nothing to help the situation. But it may be doing a whole lot to trigger anxiety.

“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety.” (Psalm 4:8 NIV)

Then the nudge was: what is truth? So many of us are hurting and need these anchors for our souls.

1. God doesn’t disappear when we go to bed. There’s a wonderful old song that ends the first stanza by saying: “Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.” God is light and there is no darkness in Him. His light is set over us throughout our long nights. Might not see it when our eyes flutter open, but it is ever present.

2. Anxiety is us still trying to do this on our own. I don’t feel like I’m purposely trying to go it alone, but truth is, if I’m counting the hours, have a racing heart when I’m awake, then I don’t think I’m resting in the Lord.

3. Remember how the Bible tells us of Jesus’ works while here on earth? Things like stilling a storm, raising the dead, healing the blind and lepers. If He could do that while He inhabited a human body, I think we are safe in concluding that He can calm the storm in and around us – but we must allow Him.

Here are verses for the truths above: (2 Corinthians 4:6, 1 Peter 5:7, Matthew 6:27). PLEASE look them up, write them out, and put them where you will see them. Repeat them in your storm. God’s Word is powerful – and He has not – and will not – dessert us. Let’s invite the only true God to work His peace in us. If you are struggling with anxiety, I would love to pray for you – and covet your prayers as well.