CONTROL – 03/23/2020

CONTROL
March 23, 2020

Prayer: Dear Lord, today I praise You for You are both omniscient and omnipresent. When I begin to worry may I turn my anxious thoughts to You, are all-knowing and ever-present Lord. Amen.

Scripture: Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24 NLT

We were early in the process of building our house in September 2008 when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 777.68 points. This was the largest single-day loss in Dow Jones history up to that point. As a result, we carried two mortgages for the better part of a year that it took to sell our home.

Many nights I woke with a start, gripped in fear at the thought we were going to lose everything. The anxiety I carried was oppressive and I could barely breathe. One night the story of Peter and the fish came to mind. I grabbed my Bible and located it in Matthew 17:27. The thought came to me that if Jesus could provide a coin in the mouth of a fish to pay the taxes, why would I think He couldn’t provide for me.

From that night on when anxious thoughts in my mind turned on, I used scripture to turn them off. I clung to the promise that God will provide what I need, and I found comfort in reading the Psalms as well.

We live in unprecedented times. Our foundations are shaking to the core, I believe in part because we buy into the lie that we are self-sufficient. When trouble comes, we realize how little control (if any) we really have. I don’t have control over this virus, the effects it is having on our schools, children, healthcare and economy, but I can control how I respond to it. I have choices to make; I can choose to give in to my anxious thoughts and what ifs, or I can choose to keep my eyes on the One who has proved to be faithful. I choose the latter.

Copyright by Doreen Madere. Email [email protected]