An Unseen Blessing

When I came to her she was shrouded in a cocoon of fear. Over the years I have learned to respect the hurt that others feel and to sit in silence before speaking and so I quietly entered into her pain. My desire is to weep with those who weep, to come along side those who are being crushed by the burdens they bear and share the load. However, when I see someone wrapped in fear I long to blanket them in peace instead.

The words of encouragement I bring are not mine but they are ancient words that I have learned to take as my own. “I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.” (Psalms 40:1,2) There is an unseen blessing that comes when you are trapped and you see no way out. When the Lord comes to you with the key of faith and you take it into your trembling hand you are blessed. “Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust.” (Psalms 40:4)

One of the most crippling aspects of fear is that when we are held captive by it we can see no way out. The circumstances that we face whether they were brought on by our own mistakes or the mistakes of others make us feel hopeless. Walled in and blinded by despair we see no possibility of escape. However, when we use the key of faith to unlock this prison we realize that he can see what we cannot.

“By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” (Hebrews 11:3) We think that solutions to our overwhelming problems must come from what we know and understand but the God who spoke the universe into being offers us himself in answer to our cry.

Sometimes we are so smothered by fear that though we might believe that there is a God we feel that he is impotent or uncaring. We find ourselves crying out as Jesus' disciples did when they were in the midst of a storm, “Jesus, don't you care that we are perishing!” Jesus had been with them all along. He was only sleeping. When he awoke the same God that spoke the universe into being spoke to the storm and immediately the storm ceased. Jesus' disciples were still filled with fear but now the fear was no longer directed at the storm but at the one who was the master of the storm. However, this is a fear that does not bind; this is a fear that brings freedom with it. Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.

When my children were young I would place my hand on their head and pray for them at the end of every day. As a young mother I was aware that this world that I had birthed them into was filled with frightening things and so I prayed, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13) I would tuck them in and kiss them goodnight knowing that I could not keep them safe from the tribulations that life would bring so I asked instead that when they encountered them that they would learn to call out to the LORD and wait patiently for him. I prayed that they would know the voice of the one who spoke the universe into being. I prayed that they would experience the joy and peace that comes from knowing the God of hope.