Isaiah 41:10

Someone in my life occasionally makes my life difficult for no apparent reason.

I’m not sure why but nothing I do ever pleases them.

To make matters worse, for a lot of reasons it is not someone I can just walk away from.

The last few days have been some of those days when they made things tough.

Yesterday was especially stressful.

I spent an entire day upset, almost to the point of tears.

I kept asking God, “Why is this happening?”, and, “Why won’t You do something?”.

After much stress and whining I finally came to my senses and realized I needed to consult the Scriptures for help.

The book of Psalms is a great place for this.

It’s a book of song lyrics that read like poetry. There’s a psalm for virtually any emotion you feel.

Happy? Sad? Angry? Scared?

There’s a Psalm for that.

I was too upset to easily call to mind the one I was thinking about, so I decided to google the phrase running through my mind and see which one it was.

Instead of taking me to Psalm 18:6,

In my distress I called to the Lord;
    I cried to my God for help.
From His temple He heard my voice;
    my cry came before Him, into His ears. (NIV)

the search engine brought up Isaiah 41:10.

I was stunned.

When I first became a Christian this was my go-to verse.

It has brought me through more troubled times than I can count.

Look at what it says,

So do not fear, for I am with you;
    do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (NIV)

Then I knew.

That was the issue.

I was dismayed.

I had a “woe is me” attitude.

Instead of going straight to God’s throne and boldly asking for His grace and mercy in my time of need, I sat down in my distress, wallowed in my problem, and looked around for an answer – a way to make it go away fast.

What I should have done instead was:

1-Immediately looked to God and gone to Him in prayer. Asked Him for wisdom. He gives it generously any time we ask. He won’t hold it back. I should have also asked Him to help me with this issue. Asked Him to intervene and protect me from this person and situation.

2-Remembered not to have fear. Fear is not from God. Perfect love, God’s love, drives out fear. God did not give me a spirit of fear. He gave me a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind. It is up to me to refuse the fear and instead focus on God and His goodness.

3-Refused to worry. I have God. He’s on my side – He loves me. He wants what’s best for me, always. This doesn’t mean that nothing will ever go wrong, or that things will always go in my favor, but it does mean all things will work together for good for me.

4-Stood on my faith. I should have trusted that because the situation is in His hand and under His control there is no need to worry. Instead, I can trust that He is working, even though I can’t see it or don’t understand. I can trust that He is going to sort it all out in His good timing.

Once I remembered the importance of turning to God with my problem and getting my eyes and thoughts focused back on Him, things started to improve.

I started to feel better. The truth of the situation began to appear. A proper way of handling it came into view.

All in all, I started to see that while the situation is hard, it is not impossible.

If I will turn to God and trust Him, He will intervene and He will help me.

He will give me strength and uphold me.

He will be right there for me. Walking with me. Guiding me through whatever comes my way.

My relationship with this person may always have its ups and downs, but as long as I keep my eyes focused on God and continue to trust Him with it, it will be manageable and I will be able to respond from a place of strength and calmness instead of worry and stress.

I will be able to walk through whatever comes my way knowing I am doing it with God by my side. He will strengthen me. He will uphold me. I just have to go to Him and trust Him.

What about you? Is there a situation in your life you need to go to Him in prayer about? Have you asked Him for the wisdom to properly handle it? If not, why don’t you do that now?

 

For Further Reading

Psalm 18
Isaiah 41
Asking for wisdom. James 1:5-6
Power, love, and a sound mind 2 Timothy 1:7
Perfect Love drives out fear 1 John 4:18
All things work together for our good Romans 8:28