I’m becoming increasingly aware of my tendency toward catastrophizing or operating out of a place of fear. It’s almost like I’m looking and waiting for the next thing to worry about.
Matthew 6:27 says, “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?”
God has shown me time and again that he’s got me, and his orchestration is good and perfect. Why do I continually doubt or tend toward a pessimistic perspective?
Last week, I had to wait multiple days for my insurance to approve my new medication. The delay was due to a strong incompatibility with another medication, my antidepressant still being in the system. It's important to note, that I had been on the antidepressant for the better part of 16 years but had recently come off three months prior.
Let’s talk perspectives:
Response from a FEAR lens: “Oh no! What will I do if I need my antidepressant again? I won’t be able to take it.”
Response from a FAITH lens: “How amazing is it that God brought me off my antidepressant months before I would need to be?”
Guess which way my mind went until a few friends voiced the faith perspective and flipped my script? As I think back over this example and the many before, I am in awe of His sovereignty and let’s be honest, patience with me!
Psalms 86:15 But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
What about when your “what if’s” become valid?
I previously shared a post about some “what ifs” about starting a new medication and taking my licensure exam. Well, here I am days before my exam and am struggling with insomnia as an adverse effect of this new medication. Three out of 10 days of decent sleep for someone who loves and needs her eight hours a night is a legitimate concern. What if my sleeplessness keeps me from thinking straight or even causes me to fail? There’s that catastrophizing.
With a valid concern in front of me, I have a choice to operate from a perspective of fear or faith. The Lyrics from the song Surrounded come to mind: “It may look like I’m surrounded (fear), but I’m surrounded by you (faith)”.
Will I focus on the “what if” (fear) or rest in the “even if” (faith)?
Even if I cannot go into my exam rested, I will do what I can to be ready and trust God for the rest.
Even if I were to fail, it is no surprise to my sovereign God and his plans and purposes are so much better than mine.
Even if ________, my God is good and I trust Him.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
What situation may you be viewing through a lens of fear?
How can you flip the script from fear to faith (I.e. "what if" to "even if")?