We do live in a crazy, mixed up world these days. As I look around, I see so many people in different stages of life. Some are angry, some are hurting, some are just plain sad. Between a virus, then riots, then killer wasps, to yesterday when almost everyone’s cell phones just stopped working, life is challenging!
Fear Sets In
I don’t know about you, but I tend to be a bit of a control freak in my life. I want a plan, I want it all to fit nicely into an Excel spreadsheet, then I want to take action on those things that makes the outcome a reality. And then, as I like to think, God laughs. In my own business and life the last few months, I had a pretty good business going, had workshops that I loved all set up with registrations and was ready to have an awesome spring. Then a virus hit and everything started shutting down.
When things like this happen to us in life, it’s easy to become afraid. And when we let fear start to take over, it can be consuming. We move into the “what ifs” of life, and often those what ifs are so much worse than reality. Yet, that’s what fear does to us.
Now if that virus wasn’t enough, then we have the killing of a man by a police officer that has set our entire country on fire (sometimes literally). And as I watched the news (don’t do that all day, by the way, it’s simply not healthy!), I started to wonder how much I should fear for my own husband. In our small city, there aren’t too many tall black men with dreadlocks, so he kind of stands out. I also watched him become pretty angry, although not for reasons you might imagine. It was the criminals, the rioters, who made him angry, and he can often be heard to say “they are making black people look bad.” You may know, he’s from Barbados. Things are very different there. He’s also a brand new US citizen, so I wonder whether this will make him regret that decision. There have been so many conversations at our house the last few weeks. His experience is his, and it’s valid. Still, the fears were mine. More on that in a bit….
I also see the reverse. I see friends truly struggling because they are feeling like someone somewhere wants them to apologize for the color of their skin. Good people, who love others, and yet they’re feeling like they need to go hide in a corner and just be because they are now somehow less. And, for the most part, they are quiet in the corner because to say “I’m here, can someone please hear my story?” opens them up to be called a racist simply because of the color of their skin. And not a one of these folks believes what has happened is okay, not one. Yet, they also feel like now we are seeing such a huge rift in our country that they wonder if it will ever be repaired. Again, their experience, and valid like any others.
And Yet, Faith
This verse has been my life verse for a very long time now. And in times like this, I find myself revisiting it over and over. Because, this says there IS a plan for the future, and it’s not one that will cause harm, but one that gives hope and a future.
I don’t believe faith and fear can co-exist. So in these trying times we have to make a choice. Will we live in fear, or will we rely on our faith? And yes, I do realize there are some who will say that’s a pretty simplistic way of looking at it. On that, I would respectfully disagree.
Time and time again when things have been hard in life, this verse has proven itself. Right after we were married, my job was eliminated and we were given very little time to move back to the States. I was in pretty good fear mode until my very awesome husband said “From the time I met you, God has always worked things out. This will be no different.” And he was right. As we leaned into that promise, it really was okay. Does that mean life was an easy, piece of cake life? No, it means in the end, there was a plan, I just couldn’t see it.
Isn’t that also the beauty of faith, though? We don’t have to see the plan. We just have to trust that it’s there.
In my business, if you’ve read my last post, you know that God just dropped a new business into my life. One that is so tightly aligned with my beliefs and values that it amazes me on a daily basis. And one that in just one short month is already growing and serving others.
In the world, well, I can’t presume to predict that. Yet, I do believe God has a plan. I have always loved this quote by Stephen Covey. So what if we just did a little more of that these days? What if we listened more, and I mean really listened, not sat there thinking about what we’re going to say when the other person is done talking. How could our world be different if we just really listened to each other and learned from each other? Without judgement, without labels and name calling, honoring each person’s story, and simply loved people and listened. And when we see changes that need to happen, take action to be a part of that change, not in anger but in love. I believe that would help start to make the changes so many of us want to see. There will always be good and bad in any group of people. Yet, I do have faith that we can find common group, if we listen with love. That is the dream for my world, and for the one I want my husband and others to experience. I hope we can get there.
On July 6, my amazing book club will be doing this book, “100 Days of Faith over Fear.” It’s an awesome devotional journal. I would love to invite you to join us as we explore how to implement this into our lives. Email me or join us at Inspiration Station VIP Lounge and continue the conversation. We’d love to have you.
