Fearless at the cliff edge of doom – Psalm 46 · Jul 18, 08:04 AM
7.18.2008
In my humble opinion, fear and faith are polar opposites. Faith is a trusting confidence in God; fear is a trusting confidence in something else… failure, death, cancer, tragedy. Fear is actually a negative form of worship… if I am not mistaken, the Hebrew word for worship means literally to “bow down.” When we fear something, we “bow down” to it and we let it fill our thoughts and imagination. There is a spiritual principle that we will come to resemble whatever we worship The same holds true for fear … by fearing failure, we allow failure to fill our thoughts and imagination … and we worship failure as ‘bigger than God’ we attract it into our lives.
When Debbie was first given the diagnosis of breast cancer, the first thing we did was pray. She quickly realized that she had been living in fear since she watched her father die of cancer. In one sense, she had been ‘bowing down’ to terrible cancer, as if cancer was bigger and stronger than God. She immediately repented and focused on fearing and worshiping God. Three years later, even though she still must go through chemo-therapy, she has already outlived the typical life expectancy for stage 4 cancer patients and all indications are that she is going strong into the foreseeable future.
Depression is an invitation for personal reflection – a chance to take inventory of our interior lives. Half the battle of overcoming depression is to be able to ask and answer the question, “why am I depressed?” There are many reasons why one might become depressed; overwork, too much stress, lack of sleep, emotional wounds, unresolved issues of the past, anger turned inward, unfulfilled expectations, and faulty beliefs.
Depression is like pain… a warning signal that there is something wrong that needs attention. If we respond honestly with God and with ourselves, and seek out appropriate help, we will come out of depression with greater wholeness and self awareness, a more intimate relationship with God, more realistic expectations of life and a better ability to relate to the people around us. As the writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 12, we are to fix our eyes on Jesus and run the race, casting aside our hindrances … those things that may causing the depression and impeding our race toward Jesus.
Psalm 46 tells us that God is a good place to hide, ready to help when we need him. He gives us the courage to stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom. Gandalf told the men of Gondor that ‘courage is your best defense now.”
1-3 God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him.
We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,
courageous in seastorm and earthquake,
Before the rush and roar of oceans,
the tremors that shift mountains.
Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
GOD-of-Angel-Armies protects us.
When you surrender everything to God, there is nothing left to fear.
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I wholly agree! We have certainly walked these things out and found them to be true. Encouraging word, Joseph. Love, Deb
— Debbie · Jul 18, 08:54 AM · #
Thank you for your faith filled message(s). You both and in inspiration and great source of hope. Much love – Fred
— Fred · Jul 19, 09:11 AM · #
Thanks, Joseph.
I hope the birthday celebration was wonderful for both of you. You are heroes.
— Steve · Jul 19, 09:48 AM · #
Good stuff, Joseph. Vulnerability opens the pathway to trust. Thanks.
Be;ated birthday blessings.
— Rod Vvansen · Jul 19, 10:54 AM · #
Hi Joseph!
Thanks so much for sharing this message. You both have learned so much about faith and fear that you could write your disseration on it! I treasure your friendship and willingness to share these struggles so that other people can learn with you.
— Brooke · Jul 19, 11:47 AM · #
Remember Chuck Reisinger’s definition of FEAR? He said “It was False Evidence Appearing Real”. Job cried, “For the thing that I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.” Job. 3:25. The remedy seems to be simply stated in Job 42:10 “The Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends.” This is the turn-around verse in this amazing book. You both seem to have learned the lesson from the Teacher who “heals our diseases.” Our love and prayers continue. Frank
— frank dawson · Jul 19, 07:14 PM · #
Thank you for opening your lives as a book that instructs us all.
— Chris Hyatt · Jul 20, 07:00 PM · #
hi Chris, Frank, Fred, Brooke and Rod. Your responses are always encouraging to us. today is a ‘down’ day for Debbie…she is very fatigued and in some mild pain from the chemo. Fear almost always tried to find an entrance into my thinking whenever I know she is not feeling well. Thats when we have to choose to have courage…and faith!
I’m sure each of you has areas where you battle fear as well … I’m not sure if it was Plato, or one of the other Greek philosophers who said; “be kind to everyone you meet, for they are fighting a great battle” . how true it is!
blessings to you all today.
jh
— joseph · Jul 21, 07:18 AM · #
I’m reading this on Monday. I hope today is a better day for both you and Debbie. I echo the comments above. Thanks for your vulnerability and your sane, faith-filled approach to the cliff of doom that you and Debbie have stood on for the last years. I’ve had my share of depressed days and weeks. Your shared wisdom brings it into perspective and illustrates the “usefulness” that depression carries with it — to get our attention so that we can deal with “the great battle” within and become more whole people who can in turn bless others. Like others have said your and Debbie’s lives are “living letters” to us. Keep sharing.
Love,
John
P.S. Hi Frank Dawson and thanks for your wisdom and insight. Much appreciated when I was twenty-something and still much appreciated at fifty-something!
— John Meadows · Jul 21, 11:52 AM · #
That is right on! I’ve been living in Psalm 27 for the past few years: “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” And, the last part of that Psalm promises that we will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Thank God and thank you for being a living example of faith! We love you guys.
— Stephen Simpson · Jul 25, 12:42 PM · #
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