Immediately

Immediately.
That’s how we want things done.
Right. Now.
Yet, many times what we want doesn’t happen immediately.
We have to wait and exercise those patience muscles.

In the waiting, it’s easy to doubt God.
Are you toying with me?
I know that You can do this thing now.
Why are You delaying?

We see the situation, but forget our vision is limited.
We don’t see the whole picture.
God is all-knowing, wise, and good.
He has a reason for having us wait.

But there are times where God acts immediately.
And I love that.

I recently read in Matthew 14 where Jesus walks on water.
He had sent his disciples on before Him in the boat.
He had stayed behind for some alone time – to pray.

The wind picked up and the disciples spent hours battling the waves.
I wonder if they thought about Jesus…
Where is He?
What is He doing?
Why isn’t He here to help us?

Jesus didn’t come right away.
But He did come.
Walking on the water.

The disciples were terrified when they saw Him,
but immediately Jesus called out to them.
“Take courage! It is I, do not be afraid.”

He wasn’t playing with their emotions.
He wasn’t amused at their terror.
He reassured them instantly.

Then when Peter came walking out to Him,
And he saw the wind and became afraid.
He started to sink and cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Immediately Jesus reached out and grabbed him.
He didn’t lecture Peter or let him sink a bit more.
He quickly stretched out His hand and lifted him up.

I love these instances where Jesus acted immediately.
He soothed their fears and calmed their anxiety.
He lifted up the doubting, falling disciple.
And He did it immediately.

So maybe you’re wondering why the Lord is having you wait on something.
I couldn’t tell you why.
But if you’re worried about the situation,
Anxious about what is to come,
Or doubting the Lord’s goodness,
Cry out to Him.

He will come to your aid immediately.

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Sudden Fear

Do not be afraid of sudden fear
Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes;
For the LORD will be your confidence
And will keep your foot from being caught.
Proverbs 3:25-26

Have you ever been blindsided?

Something comes out of nowhere and hits you like a suckerpunch.

A car wreck.
A diagnosis.
A pink slip.
An exploding relationship.

Maybe there were warning signs, but you missed it.

This disaster caught you off guard, and you’re terrified of it.

There are two ways to react to sudden fear:

Look to God, or try and solve it on your own.

King Asa is a prime example.

For the first ten years of his reign, there was peace in Judah.

Suddenly, the Ethiopian army of a million men surges against his kingdom.

Asa had never experienced anything like this before, but he knew who to turn to:

Then Asa called to the LORD his God and said, “LORD, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength;
so help us, O LORD our God, for we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude.
O LORD, You are our God; let not man prevail against You.”
2 Chronicles 14:11

King Asa felt helpless, but he knew that God was able to help.

God did deliver Asa, and his kingdom ended up in better shape than before.

Fast forward 20 years.

There had been 2 decades of peace – no war, no threats.

Suddenly, Asa’s rival, the king of Israel, captures an important city and begins to cut off Judah’s supply routes.

Out of nowhere, disaster hit.

This time, King Asa forgot how the LORD had helped him.

Instead of calling on God, he turns to an enemy king for help.

He asks the king of Aram to attack Israel so that they would stop attacking Judah.

Asa takes treasures out of the house of God and gives them to the king of Aram as payment.

Risky move.

But it worked.

Aram attacked Israel, and Israel left Judah alone.

Asa must have felt pretty pleased with himself.

He got ‘er done.

Disaster averted.

Then a prophet comes and tells him that he messed up big-time.

If he had relied on God instead of the enemy king, he would have triumphed over all his enemies.

Instead, he will have continual war the rest of his days.

King Asa gets angry at this message from God, and throws the prophet in prison.

He doesn’t humble himself and repent.

He ends his days miserably, with an incurable disease in his feet.

Even in his sickness, he seeks the help of physicians and refuses to seek the Lord.

Do not be afraid of sudden fear
Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes;
For the LORD will be your confidence
And will keep your foot from being caught.
Proverbs 3:25-26

The first time disaster struck, Asa responded the right way.

The Lord was his confidence.

The second time, Asa responded the wrong way.

He depended on someone else, and his foot was (literally) caught for the rest of his days.

When sudden fear comes, we don’t have to be afraid.

We can be confident of the Lord’s protection and help in the midst of a distressing situation.

If you’re going through something dark right now, make it a point to continually remember all the ways He has helped you in the past.

Don’t forget how strong He is, and how delighted He is to come to our rescue when we call on Him.

He is our confidence.

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Do Not Fear

“Oh no! What do we do?!”

Panic gripped Elisha’s servant when he woke up to the enemy army surrounding the city.

Fear, anxiety, worry.

What do we do??

I ask that question a lot, too.

There’s a big problem. (Honestly, sometimes it’s a little problem).
I’m afraid. I’m anxious. I’m upset.
“WHAT DO I DO?”

I put it all on my shoulders.

Do I fight it out, or do I flee?

Do I jump in and fix it, or do I high-tail it out of there… putting distance between me and the situation?

I feel like the whole outcome hinges on my response.

Elisha’s servant asked the question: “What do we do?”

Elisha’s response: “Do not fear.”

What? Instead of setting me up with a good plan of action, you’re telling me something I shouldn’t do?

Don’t fear? There’s every reason to fear!

But then Elisha tips him off to the secret:

“Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

Elisha prays that the servant’s eyes may be opened.

He looks up and the Lord shows him the other reality: horses and chariots of fire cover the entire mountain.

Do not fear.

Lift up your eyes to the mountains.

The Lord is mighty to save.

When a problem paralyzes us with fear,

We’re blinded to the other reality….

The presence of the God of the universe.

It doesn’t all depend on us.

To think the outcome hinges on me is pride masquerading as worry.

Let’s ask the Lord to open our eyes.

To see His strength, power, and deliverance.

Then we can call upon HIM to save.

He is strong enough and He cares enough to deal with any situation.

Do not fear.

Read more of the account in 2 Kings 6:8-23

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