15 Aug Fear of What God is Asking Me to Do
It’s been awhile since I listened to this, but I love this sermon from Life Church on fear. One of my favorite verses is 2 Timothy 1:7, For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
So many people live in fear. Fear is placing your faith in the wrong thing. It’s not that you have a lack of faith, it’s that the faith is focused in the wrong place. Often times our fear is faith in the ‘what if’ situations which drives us to a point of panic. ‘What if I lose my job’. ‘What if I never have kids’. etc.
Why are we so afraid of God’s Plans?
1. God’s Interruptions are Often Inconvenient. So often we view what happens in life as inconvenient. We blame God for what is going on, but what we don’t realize is that what we call interruptions are often God’s invitations to something better. In Luke 1, Gabriel spoke to Mary. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean.“Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! Luke 1:28-30. Talk about an interruption – in these verses Mary was excited to get married and God did a complete 180 and told her instead she was going to have a child. But, she was also told that favor was upon her and there was nothing to fear. What a great reminder for us too. When we are interrupted we have nothing to fear, God is with us, and His favor is on us.
2. God’s Purpose is often different than your plans. Trust Him that no matter what He is doing, it’s better than your plan. Can you even imagine what was going through Mary’s mind when she was told she was going to birth a son out of wedlock, especially since she was supposed to be getting married soon? She had to tell Joseph she was pregnant, even though she was a virgin – talk about a crazy conversation. But, God had better plans for her – think of what an interruption that was to find out, but reflect on how the world has changed since Jesus was born.
Colby and I know all about God interrupting us. If it were our way, we would have two kids by now, but clearly that is not God’s plan. I think back to when Melanie approached me in that airport because she saw the book I was reading about infertility. If we weren’t going through infertility I wouldn’t have been reading that book and would have never met Melanie. Oh how our life’s have changed so much since meeting her. What I thought was an interruption to our plan to have kids, has been an invitation to something better. It has been so much more than I could have asked or imagined. He is inviting us to a better story.
Maybe you lost a job and you don’t understand why, maybe your waiting on a baby after years of infertility, or maybe you broke up with that man who was supposed to be your husband. I don’t know what your interruption is, but despite the fact that you think it’s a curse, God is inviting you to something better. He does immeasurably more than you could ask or imagine. Recognize that the outcome is God’s responsibility, but obedience is yours. Is God asking you to take a step of faith while He has called you out upon the ocean? What is holding you back? Trust Him! He will bless you for your obedience.
Emily @ EatLoveProcreate
Posted at 09:15h, 15 AugustLove the quote. One door can’t open sometimes without another one closing first, but the wait in between can seem so long sometimes. As hard as it is to come to terms with that sometimes, God always shows how the next thing will bring an even bigger blessing. I believe that!
Amanda
Posted at 09:49h, 15 AugustThis is a great post! I love reading about this, because I have a lot of fear about the “what ifs.” I do think that in some ways a lot of fear demonstrates a lack of faith in God. I’ve never thought about it the way you said it: that it’s not that you don’t have faith but that your faith is placed in the wrong thing. I think that when I am fearful of a “what if.” I am placing faith in myself, as if I can control something or that by worrying about it I can make it happen. Which is obviously not true at all. Getting fired from my job last year was terrible, but it turned out to be the best thing ever because I love my job now! You’re right about those being opportunities for God to give us something better.
CHELSEA
Posted at 11:47h, 15 AugustLoved this post!!! Seriously, I love all your posts. It’s one of the reasons I just nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award! Love ya Caroline!
Jena
Posted at 17:23h, 15 AugustWhat a great way to think about it, loving this post! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Megan Davis
Posted at 06:27h, 16 AugustAvery and I are always saying “it’s a good thing we aren’t God.”. His ways are so much better than ours, even when they don’t make sense at the time!
Kara
Posted at 15:25h, 16 AugustGreat reminder, Caroline! Thanks! 🙂
Tiffany
Posted at 15:27h, 16 AugustI love your attitude!!!
jennifer prod
Posted at 18:41h, 17 August“what we call interruptions are often God’s invitations to something better” – so much wisdom. i have to tell you, i often think about your blog when i’m worried or distressed, and it always calms me down. you do so much good work!
Lauren
Posted at 07:31h, 18 AugustSo true… but it never feels like it at the time! It’s interesting looking back on the misery I was feeling from September-April of last year and realizing that it was just an invitation to Westminster… crazy… The Lord is good.
Kelli {A Deeper Joy}
Posted at 14:00h, 18 AugustI totally read this and was going to comment and must have gotten distracted. You know my struggle with fear lately! Working on it! Trusting that God knows what’s best so I have no reason to fear 🙂
Cheryl Smith
Posted at 08:13h, 19 AugustAnother wonderful post, Caroline! I am so far behind in my reading…trying to catch up. Things have been crazy here! I am really trying to absorb what you said and praying for God to help me have more of an open mind to the “interruptions” He brings. Sometimes, WE interrupt HIM by insisting upon and inserting our own plans into HIS Divine agenda, you know? God help me to just submit all that we are facing right now into His hands and allow Him to lead the way He needs to. Surrender is the hardest part.
Inhospitable Womb
Posted at 11:03h, 19 AugustLove the quote, a good reminder at a time when I am sitting out next cycle and getting frustrated about it.
Chelsea @ The Contented Wife
Posted at 08:44h, 21 AugustI can relate to this post so much. My husband and I are patiently (sometimes impatiently) waiting on God’s plan in our lives. Sometimes it’s so hard to know what it is He wants us do, but we are trying to hard to just let go and let God! We don’t want to push our own plans, and this post is a good reminder of why we don’t want to do that! It’s a good reminder that God’s way is ALWAYS better than what we have planned for ourselves. We don’t see the big picture, but He does. Thanks for sharing!
Tiffany (A Touch of Grace)
Posted at 09:35h, 21 AugustI 100% relate to this post. My mom is such a “what if’er.” She is what if’ing her life away. Drives me crazy. I do it too sometimes, but I need to trust that God knows his plan for me. My hubby and I have been waiting for months to hear from his company if we’ll be moving next year. It’s almost September and nothing. There is a lot to do to get ready to uproot your life and move. It’s so frustrating. I can either be frustrated, or take comfort in the fact that God is giving us this time for a reason. Great post girl!
Sarah
Posted at 20:41h, 24 AugustI can completely relate to this post. I left my husband a couple of years ago when I found out he was having an affair. We had two little ones and I had been a stay at home mom for several years. I thought my world was ending and I didn’t understand why. 6 months after leaving him, I met someone new. Someone who loved me for me, loved my children, and most of all, loved God too. We just got married this summer and life could not be better at this point. I hated the ‘interruption’ I had before, but it certainly led to somewhere much better.
Thank you for linking up with the SHINE Blog Hop this week! This is a great post. 🙂