{insert God's voice, "Ahem, I picked it, not you...and by the way...you asked!"}
So guess what's been happening over here on the farm for the last couple of months? Our security has been rattled on way more fronts than I am comfortable with.
* 4 of our children were faced with medical challenges that require specialists
* 1 aunt is currently in the hospital and doing very poorly
* my dad underwent surgery
* we took a huge financial hit when we got our tax bill
* the weather did not cooperate with our farming operations
* since spending the week in the hospital with our youngest son my neck and shoulders are in pain most of the time, which makes it hard to concentrate
* I had to battle through relationship hits
* we had a massive storm pass through the area that had us all squirming just a bit and without power for an evening and another day (tornadoes touched down not too far away)
* our issues with our RAD son flared up and now we need to replace a living room window which feeds into my insecurities about our less than perfect home
Add those to my ongoing insecurities about my body, my abilities and playing the comparison game and you can see that I have been a mess people! I did not like the month of June at all. Not to mention that it has been too hot for my liking and my hip is covered in mosquito bites. Aaarrghhh
However, God in His mercy takes us through these things in order to teach us, refine us and have us looking just a little more like Jesus. Months before we decided to speak on insecurity I picked up Beth Moore's book, "So Long Insecurity", it's been a wonderful help in preparing for these messages. Then as I was reading through 1 Kings I saw so many of God's people who wrestled with insecurity and what it cost them in the end. Jeroboam, Rehoboam and Solomon all threw away their kingdoms through insecurity. Sarah and Hagar with both insecure women, the results of their insecurities made them both miserable (and all generations after, too). Our insecurities can have far reaching effects.
The truth is that all of us have insecurities. They don't look the same and are not triggered by the same things. We are insecure to different degrees. Some of us are very clever at hiding them and some are just fooling themselves.
Our insecurities wreak havoc on our lives and relationships and they need to be taken down. Each and every one of them is based in fears and lies. God's word is full of rich promises that help us combat the enemy of our security. Satan knows, and we need to remember, that God has already made us secure. As Mrs. Beth says, "God gave us our security. It is ours to keep. No one else can have it." Even though we may be embarrassed, feeling under-dressed for the occasion, or gossiped about we do not need to let go of our security, it is ours, bought with a price and we need not let go of it.
Here are a few more thoughts to bring it home:
Matthew 6 - Don't worry about what you eat or drink or what you wear...don't worry about your life your heavenly Father already knows that you have need of these things (paraphrase mine)
Proverbs 3:26 "the Lord is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap."
Psalm 112:7-8 "He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes."
Hebrews 10:35-36 "Do not give away you confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised."
Romans 8:28 "God works ALL things together for good."
Believe the truth, God is trustworthy, He has got you covered from every angle and He is fighting for you.
Blessings,
Lani - the flowerlady
on facebook: Lani Fast Wiens
on pinterest - lanireneewiens
Links:
"So Long Insecurity" by Beth Moore is available at www.christianbook.com and amazon
1 comment:
I truly appreciated this post tonight. In a place where I needed to read this. Thank you.
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