Alone Together #4 Respond vs. React

As this storm increases, stay well informed, but keep your gaze upon God.

Jehoshaphat was afraid and turned his attention to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. So Judah gathered together to seek help from the LORD; they even came from all the cities of Judah to seek the LORD.

2 Chron 20:3-4

Read 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 Jehoshaphat has an unprecedented deluge of attack descending upon his people. Sound familiar?

There are so many principles in this passage, but I want to zero in on verse 3 and Jehoshaphat’s response to the crisis. “Jehoshaphat was afraid and turned his attention to seek the LORD”.

• Jehoshaphat was afraid. God continually tells us “Do not fear”, but that is a very different thing than being afraid.

Afraid is:

• An adjective

• An emotion

• A natural, normal, sometimes healthy reaction—just like you couldn’t help but feel pain if I kicked you in the shin.

But To fear is:

• A verb

• A response—we must train to become “response able” vs knee-jerk reactions

• Giving power to that of which you are afraid

Jehoshaphat had a normal healthy response to a crisis coming down on him, but he immediately made a choice to reach out to the Almighty God rather than be controlled by fear.

It’s okay to feel afraid—or any other tough emotion. It can be very unhealthy if we do not feel emotional response to really difficult situations. But don’t get stuck there! Don’t give power to the fear. Pour your heart out to the Lord, remember who He is (may I recommend Knowledge of the Holy by AW Tozer?)

Read, remember, rehearse, rest in who HE is:

Once God has spoken;

Twice I have heard this:

That power belongs to God;

Psalm 62:11

Spend some time looking at Jehoshaphat’s prayer. What timeless principles do you see?

Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD before the new court, and he said, "O LORD, the God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens? And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand so that no one can stand against You. "Did You not, O our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? They have lived in it, and have built You a sanctuary there for Your name, saying, 'Should evil come upon us, the sword, or judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before You (for Your name is in this house) and cry to You in our distress, and You will hear and deliver us.' "Now behold, the sons of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom You did not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt (they turned aside from them and did not destroy them), see how they are rewarding us by coming to drive us out from Your possession which You have given us as an inheritance. "O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this great multitude who are coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You."

2 Chronicles 20:13 All Judah was standing before the LORD, with their infants, their wives and their children.

May we, as the Body of Christ, stand humbly before God, keeping our eyes on Jesus, trusting in the eternal God, encouraging our families and communities, ready to be obedient to His marching orders to love and serve in any way the Lord wants to use us. We kneel before the sovereign God, fix our eyes on Jesus, and respond with “Here am I, Lord. Send me.”

Praying for each of you as we walk through this minefield together. Take good care of each other.

Alone Together #3 Roller Coaster Emotions

Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;

For I trust in You;

Teach me the way in which I should walk;

For to You I lift up my soul.

Psalm 143:8

How is your soul today?

So many thoughts and emotions jockeying for position right now: anxiety, fear, confusion, grief, loss, frustration, anger, security, hope, love, peace and unshakable joy. It takes every ounce of strength to stay out of the “What If…?” spiral. Some days I do better than others. Some hours I battle the onslaught. You may find your sleep disturbed. You may be exhausted as the mental and emotional toll of this crisis leech our strength and stamina. Please respond to increased need for rest for both your body and mind during this season.

Our world is shaking while our King is securely on His throne. How do I reconcile this in my head and heart?

My #1 suggestion: spend time in the Psalms. These poems do not shy away from the tough conflicts. They allow us to pour out our soul through every emotion known to man. The psalms coach us through from lament toward praise. They teach us to pray when we have no idea how to begin. From fear, confusion, attack, suffering, betrayal and ever other pain to reliance, faith, remember, and anchoring our selves in an unchanging God.

I invite you to read 5 psalms a day (with one entire day for 119) for one month. Then repeat for the rest of your life. Literally. Use the 20/20/20 from Alone Together #2 to read, reread, slow down, meditate, absorb, then respond to these poems. Let them guide you as the Divine Mentor holds us and walks us through to learn to fix our eyes on Him.

More tomorrow on how to process the emotional roller coaster…

Overview of Psalms from the Bible Project:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9phNEaPrv8

Alone Together #2 God has not Changed

Greetings fellow quarantined friends. I trust you are all sheltering in place, only venturing out for essentials. Rough news increasing around the world. We continue to pray without ceasing.

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit." Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that."

(James 4:13-15)

So many cancellations, delays, changes, and disappointments. Minor disappointments and heartbreaking grief of loss. So many things we have counted on or taken for granted now gone, delayed, or upended—for a season or permanently. If this crisis teaches us nothing else, it should crush that any delusion we may entertain that we are in control. We are not sovereign, but God is.

The world has changed. God has not. ”Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8) Do I believe that? Really? When the rubber meets the road, can I lean into His sovereignty and trust His character, no matter what happens?

Today, I invite you to pour your heart out to God. Many of you have done Pete and Geri Scazzero’s “Explore the Iceberg”. Pull out your journal and set aside four pages titled mad, sad, anxious, and glad. Begin to write what’s in your head and in your heart. We need to write because things will flow out of your pen you may not have realized were in your head or heart. Know that many items will wind up on multiple lists. That’s okay. Especially right now, we are a jumble of emotions and thoughts.

When you have spent some unhurried time pouring out your soul, bring the entire jumble before God. Surrender to His sovereignty. Lay every detail out to Him. Write a prayer or even a psalm to the Lord. Invite the Prince of Peace to rule in your head, heart, and hands.

My prayer is often, “Lord, meet me where I am, take me where you want me to be.” Invite Him to meet you in the depths of your iceberg, then spend some time remembering and rehearsing who He is—His names, attributes, character, past faithfulness in your life. Selah: take some time in silence to let Him whisper to you.

May I invite you to sing and meditate on one of my favorite hymns:

The Solid Rock by Edward Mote

    My hope is built on nothing less

    Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;

    I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

    But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

        Refrain:

        On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;

        All other ground is sinking sand,

        All other ground is sinking sand.

    When darkness veils His lovely face,

    I rest on His unchanging grace;

    In every high and stormy gale,

    My anchor holds within the veil.

    His oath, His covenant, His blood

    Support me in the whelming flood;

    When all around my soul gives way,

    He then is all my hope and stay.

    When He shall come with trumpet sound,

    Oh, may I then in Him be found;

    Dressed in His righteousness alone,

    Faultless to stand before the throne.

Lean into the unshakeable truth that God is still sitting on His throne.

The LORD sat as King at the flood;

Yes, the LORD sits as King forever.

Psalm 29:10

Rest. Go in peace and the peace of God attend you.