Here’s another Inner Fullfillment devotional I need to share! Thank you Annagail once again for stricking a nerve and waking us up to what we need to understand!
…I have struggled in the past with anxiety issues. I still do from time to time. If I dwelled on the negative thoughts too long, they sent me into a full-blown panic attack. I have experienced panic attacks less frequently since I learned to stay still.Conventional wisdom tells us when things are going wrong in our lives, when we are going through crisis, we should work harder, read more of the Bible, confess more Scriptures, do more good works.
No, the time for reading, confessing and doing is before the trial. See trials are similar to growing crops. We have to plant the seed, water it and give it sunlight before it grows up. Once it is here, that’s not the time to plant, water or give it sunlight. In fact, if we didn’t do all those things before, we wouldn’t have any crops at all. Instead, when it grows up, it is time to harvest.
The same is true for trials. When we are in the middle of the trial, that is not the time to start reading the Word or confessing Scripture. It is the time to maintain our reading and confessing.
We should be reading the Word and confessing Scriptures before the trial to prepare us for the hard times.
It is a time to rest, to stay still, to believe that God will do what He promised in His Word.
Rest? What does that mean? Most of us in this work hard, play hard society have no idea what it means to rest. We think it means to sleep, but rest is so much more than that.
My Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary has ten definitions for rest. My favorites are freedom from activity; quiet; tranquillity; peace of mind or spirit; to repose without anxiety; to trust; rely; depend.
We say we believe God. We say we believe His Word and all the promises in it, but do we really?
Do we believe Him enough to say “God, You said You shall supply all my needs according to Your riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Lord, I’m just going to rest in that promise, knowing you are going to come through for me”? Even when we are facing money issues? Unemployment? Demotion? An empty bank account?
Do we believe Him enough to trust in Him? Rely on Him? Depend on Him when we are in a crisis? For most of us, the answer is no.
Where has our belief in our circumstances gotten us? Where has our belief in the bad reports of this world gotten us? We received what we believed.
If that is true, wouldn’t the opposite be true too? If we believe God’s Word and put our faith in what God has said, wouldn’t we receive what we believe too?
What do we have to lose? If it doesn’t work for us, we are still in the same position as we were before. We are no worse and no better.
But what if it does work as God said it would? Then we could be living the life God intended for us to live.
Stay still in adverse circumstances. Believe God. Rely solely on Him and His Word because He keeps us in perfect peace when our minds are stayed on Him.
– Annagail Lynes
Filed under: Prayer, Salvation | Tagged: Annagail Lynes, anxiety, Believe, Faith, Faith-Lift Friday, FLF, trial, tribulation |
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HL's Journey 
Wow, What a great reminder to stay in the Word of God always not just in crisis!
It is so important to build our faith bones just like we build our physical bones.. with consistent time spent in the word. Thanks for sharing!
DJ
Beautiful, timely post. We are in a season of waiting…and resting/trusting while waiting is something I need to work on 🙂
Thank you for sharing this!