Dear friend, what is your greatest fear? Mine used to be that I would be a widow. Used to be… no longer. How? Why?
First, not that I relish the idea of becoming a widow, I no longer ‘worry’ about it. Why? I realized that our lives (mine and hubby’s) are in God’s hands. We will never know who goes first. One day, a friend said: Wow, your in-laws live such long lives. Your hubby would too. LOL. I have never thought of it that way. I did not and do not think that hubby would have a long life just because his parents had one. Somehow, God used the friend’s words to help me see another perspective.
When my parents died in 2016, I learned more lessons on being brave, on living and dying. The older does not always precede the younger. Dad was 92 and mom passed on at 78, 5 months ahead. God’s timetable is totally different from ours. What use is there for me to worry about becoming a widow? God will take care of me as He took care of dad when mom died. And what of the many times I went through the valley of the shadow of death: cancer, depression, anxiety attacks, broken ankle and surgery while grieving for my mom and worried for my dad? When I was deeply depressed, I faced each new day with such fear, I said Lord, pls take me. I don’t want to live like this. The Lord sent me praying friends to walk with me and see me through. The Spirit helped me fight my depressive fear and lethargy to go out to be with friends to help me get better.
Bottom line: God helps me overcome my fears a.k.a. worries. How? Thru the words and deeds of people in unexpected places and time in surprising means which only He can bring about.
Let me illustrate with a story. I have this fear of snorkeling. I do not like using the mask. I hyperventilate as I’m not used to breathing thru my mouth. So I had a chance to do it again and overcome my fear. My kind friends patiently helped me. David is a good teacher. He let me practice breathing thru my mouth. Mi Young cheered me on to take my time. And so, I was ashamed to fail them. I prayed and told myself to be brave. I held on to their hands- on my left and on my right. And together, we explored the beautiful sea-nery: a sea urchin, lots of fish: different sizes, shapes and color. It was wonderful. No guts, no glory. 😊 Thank you, Lord!
So dear friend, what is your fear? What do you worry about? It’s been said that courage is not the absence of fear but the presence of God. Let me add that courage needs practice. Practice makes perfect. And God sends help to let me practice. Practice being brave with God and with man!
One Comment
Thanks.