Be Wise

I’m preparing for an adult Sunday School class, and the topic is wisdom — something that, in my opinion, we’re not showing much of lately in our country.  What is true wisdom?  Well, it goes beyond book learning and intellectual accomplishments.  For the Christian, wisdom is knowing God’s Word and applying it well to life.

For example, right now we are facing a pandemic.  The Coronavirus is spreading.  People are panicking. What should we do?  Some would say the Bible has no advice on this problem, but it does– for example, remember the parable about the farmer who decided to build bigger barns to store his excess produce?  Here’s what God said to him:

” ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'” Luke 12:20

In other words, God tells us not to hoard. It may not benefit us at all, and it will harm others. So why on earth are experiencing a shortage of toilet paper?  This is not wise behavior.  What the Bible does say is “love your neighbor as yourself.” (Mark 12:31)  Before you empty that shelf, stop and remember that your neighbor needs these items as well.

People are becoming excessively worried about going out among others.  Now, don’t get me wrong.  If you have a chronic health condition that puts you at risk, or are elderly or in another high risk group, of course, stay in,    Everyone else — take reasonable precautions– wash your hands, keep them away from your face, cover your coughs, disinfect what you can.  Don’t make unnecessary trips to public venues.  Seek medical attention and self isolate if you have symptoms. Then stop worrying.  Again, the Bible asks us:

^“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life?”  Luke 12:25

I understand.  I’m an anxious person myself, and with the barrage of negative information we’re receiving it’s tempting to give in to fear and act in what seems to be our own best ( sometimes selfish) interest. But if knowing what the Bible says doesn’t lead us to act in obedience, what’s the point in saying we’re Christians? (for more on this topic see The Right Kind of Faith) We will experience true peace, even at times like this, when we depend upon Christ and admit that He’s in control and we are not.  In fact, we never were!  Maybe that’s the lesson God is teaching us.

^“ But I trust in you, Lord;
    I say, “You are my God.”
My times are in your hand
    deliver me from the hands of my enemies,
    from those who pursue me.” Psalm 31: 14-15

 

 

 

Do Not Worry?

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you-you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” Matthew 6: 25-34

These verses have been coming up recently in my study.  First, we had a Sunday School lesson on them;  then they showed up again in a book I am reading about “respectable sins” (more about that in an upcoming post).  Yes, I am learning, worrying is a sin.  We may excuse it by saying, “that’s just how I am — I was born a worrywart!”  That certainly seems true of me.  We may even find it a bit admirable — worriers are often the best planners, and certainly God doesn’t want us to go through life oblivious to our needs and responsibilities.  At the core, however, worry betrays a lack of trust in God.  Jesus tells us in the verses above that we can rest assured that God cares for us, and our lives will work out, when we put His kingdom first.  Trust puts one foot forward at a time, day by day and resists feeling anxious about the future.

I also recently read about anxiety in a book about insomnia (didn’t I tell you God directs my reading?)  One suggestion given was, if you tend to worry and can’t sleep, set aside a “worry time” each day — maybe just 30 minutes.  Ask yourself what things are really bothering you, and then decide what you’ll do about it.  When the worry comes back, tell yourself, “I’ve already thought about that problem, and  I have a plan for dealing with it….. then put it out of your mind.  As a Christian, our “worry time” might be part of our hour of prayer.  Let God know what’s on your mind, and ask Him to help you resolve it.  Then ask for His peace about the situation, knowing He will give it to you.

Maybe, like me, you’re a natural worrier (because we all are, after all, natural sinners).  You can’t entirely avoid those worrisome thoughts;  but you can stop yourself from obsessing.  Turn them over to God.  Pray instead.

He loves you and so do !

Other posts about worry:

Who’s Got Your Back?

Growing Older

Afraid of all the Things by Scarlet Hiltibidal–Book Review

 

Afraid of all the Things by Scarlet Hiltibidal–Book Review

Scarlet Hiltibidal and I have a lot in common;  she likes to write;  her favorite yogurt is Chobani almond coco loco;  and she’s afraid of many things.  As a child, she kept a journal of all the things that scared her– everything from firenadoes (yes, there is such a thing), plane crashes, drive-by shootings and not getting enough sleep.  As an adult, she recognizes that sometimes we anxious folks need medical intervention — the brain is part of our body, and a problem with it can’t always be overcome by positive thinking, anymore than thinking good thoughts will cure a stomach ache.  However, as Christians, we do have some important tools to help us work through our worry issues.  In other words through, our faith we gain the fortitude to cope with anxiety.

• Sometimes we anxious people try to fake it.  We put on a façade of control.  Here’s what Scarlet says about that:

“If your identity revolves around a job, or a person, or what your body looks like, or anything other than Jesus, you will continue to live burdened;  and you will ultimately compound your fear.”

In other words, we don’t have to pretend;  we can rest in our true worth as children of God.

• Anxious minds are distracted minds;  they wander everywhere imagining all sorts of tragic scenarios;  most of all they focus on the self.  To combat this, we need to become single-minded, focusing on God and His word.

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, think on these things…” Philippians 4:8

Memorizing scripture and repeating comforting verses in times of stress will calm our fears.

• We can learn to accept help from other Christians.

“It’s scary out there.  We can’t do it without each other.  And the gifts that come from learning to lean on one another are priceless.”

 

• Finally, when anxiety strikes, we can remember that fear has already been defeated.

“The work of Jesus on the cross has ALREADY saved us and WILL save us forever.”

Nothing that happens to us can affect our ultimate destiny.  Our sins, our fears, even our death will not last forever.

Verdict:  I’ve read many resources on anxiety, and I didn’t learn anything new from this one.  It was a bit repetitive.  However, Hiltibidal keeps the reader engaged with her personal examples and her Christian perspective is spot on.  I give it 4 stars.  If you would like to order this book, follow the link below:

https://www.bhpublishinggroup.com/products/afraid-of-all-the-things-3/

 

 

Martin Luther on Tribulation

Those speak foolishly who ascribe their anger or their impatience to such as offend them or to tribulation. Tribulation does not make people impatient, but proves that they are impatient. So everyone may learn from tribulation how his heart is constituted.

Martin Luther

I’m going off theme here, because I found this quote and I really like it.  These days we might be inclined to substitute “stress” for tribulation.  How do you behave under stress?  If you become angry or impatient, doesn’t that mean the person you’re really angry with is God?  Doesn’t it show a lack of obedience and submission to His will? Isn’t it sin?  Our sin, not somebody else’s?

My problem with stress is different.  I’m likely to worry, fret and sometimes become so overwhelmed I have trouble making a decision or moving forward at all.  This is sin also, just a different kind.  It’s boils down to lack of trust in God’s goodness.

Maybe you’re reaction is different from either of these.  You may have a different sinful stress behavior, or you may be mature enough to let go and let God in times of suffering.  For most of us, it’s something with which we have trouble, something we need to work on. We will experience trouble and tribulation.  The Bible tells us that is certain. We can grow through these times, or we can keep repeating the behaviors that get us nowhere.  Behavior that hurts others and hurts us.  Luther’s right.  Our reactions are our own and we need to take responsibility for them, and learn to do better.  They reveal where we are spiritually.  Next time you’re stressed, take a look in the mirror.  Do you like what you see?

 

Let’s Get Personal

I believe that once we become a Christian, and start trying to follow God’s will, He will gradually change us into the person He created us to be (in Lutheran speak, that’s sanctification).  That doesn’t mean our whole personality will do an about face.  It doesn’t mean we’ll be transformed into saints.  It does mean we’ll be more like Jesus, and more gifted, more joyful, more full of life, more peaceful with ourselves and others.

In my own case, the biggest thing God frees me from (I say frees because it still has to happen daily) is fear.  If I were asked to choose one word to describe myself, especially years ago, it would be shy, maybe even timid.  Social situations were not pleasant, but stressful.  I was afraid people wouldn’t like me, that they would discover what a fraud I was, or that I would make a stupid mistake.  Of course, that kept me from trying all kinds of things or taking risks of any kind … who knew what might happen?  It’s not a great way to live.

Becoming a serious Christian helped me to move outside of my comfort zone.  I’m still a quiet introvert (nothing wrong with that, it’s how God made me!) but I have taught Sunday School (children and adults), led workshops and retreats, given talks to groups, organized committees and more. I can use the gifts God gave me in my own way.  I’m not tooting my own horn, just telling you what God can do, because I would NEVER, EVER have done those things without Him.

Am I still afraid?  All the time.  My husband says if there isn’t something to worry about, I’ll invent it.  However, I don’t have to let my anxiety control me. I can step out in faith and take a risk.  A friend of mine once said, “there’s no better place to try something new than at church.  If you fail, they’ll still love you.”  That’s what’s so freeing about being a Christian — you know that no matter what happens, you can never lose the love and Christ.

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control.”  1 Timothy 1:7

What has God freed you from?  We want to hear from you.

 

 

Just Pray

“Pray and let God worry.”

Martin Luther

I admit it, I’m a worrier.  I fret about things and imagine the worst case scenario.  It’s become a joke with my children:  they call my side of the family “the happy Kaufmans” because we all have a hard time relaxing and having fun (and though my daughters make fun of us, they admit that deep down, they are happy Kaufmans, too). We’re constantly expecting something to go wrong.  This negative mindset(which boils down to a lack of trust in God) seems built into us, and I suspect it’s just part of our sinful nature.  We’re all inclined to sin in particular ways:  it may be genetic (I suspect it is in my case) or it may be learned.  It really doesn’t matter how it got there, the point is it persists and if it isn’t dealt with, it can drive a wedge between us and God.

There’s a remedy for my sin, and it will work for yours, too.  You can probably guess what it is: PRAYER.

Philippians 4:6-7

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

If we focus on Jesus instead of our problem (whatever that may be) our minds will be renewed.  We will have peace instead of turmoil;  trust instead of anxiety;  gratitude instead of anger.  Wouldn’t life be so much better if we all would just pray?