ALL THE SCARY “THINGS”

ON THE PORCH

ALL THE SCARY THINGS

**For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, “Do not fear; I will help you.”  Isaiah 41:13

Image by Gianclaudio Spena from Pixabay

I am a member of an amazing group of women online, and I really enjoy playing their old recordings to pass time while I walk, work, and drive.   While listening to their annual conference the other day, the speaker told a beautiful love story about a wild, spunky, little mountain boy she and her husband adopted.  Both mama and son had so much childhood trauma and heartache to work through that they started counseling together.  After a year of therapy, they had a session she said she would never forget.  This beloved child walked around the playroom gathering all the snakes, rats, and dinosaurs he could find.  He placed the snakes around his mom’s neck and the other frightening animals in her lap.  While she sat, holding all these items, her son turned away and began to play with Legos for the first time ever.  She was a little confused, thinking he was trying to freak her out and see what she would do.  Meanwhile, their therapist texted her saying this was a HUGE breakthrough.  This child had gathered all the scary things he could find and placed them on her.  Only then did he feel safe playing without worrying that something might harm him.

I cried while listening to her recall this precious memory. It is such a beautiful story portraying this child’s trust and confidence in his new Mama to keep him safe from harm.  He knew in his little heart that she was strong enough, and loved him enough, to hold all his scary things and protect him.

In that moment, My Creator, who loves me beyond belief, asked me to search my heart and mind and give Him all the things that cause me anxiety, worry, and fear.

You know!?!?…”The thing.”

The thing that threatens my future…

The thing that shakes me to the core…

The thing that looms over the safety of my loved ones…

The thing that demands I worry through the day and startles me awake in the middle of the night…

The thing that constantly keeps my mind and heart racing…

The thing that literally takes my breath away…

He wants

EVERY.

SINGLE.

SCARY.

THING…

Lately, my heart and mind have been overwhelmed with these “things.”   They get heavier every day, weighing me down, sucking the life out of me, and prioritize the need to stay on guard for the next unnerving circumstance.

I cannot play. 

I cannot rest.

I cannot let my guard down.

And sometimes, I cannot breathe.

In the kind and gentle way only He can, God is showing me… I was not created to manage all the scary things on my own.   When I think about “allowing” God control, I’m not really giving Him anything He doesn’t already own.  By placing these things that haunt me in His lap, I’m just settling the matter in my own mind of who is in charge, reminding myself that He is bigger than anything I face.   

God can be trusted.  He can replace these things that terrify me with His reassurance that He always has my best at heart.  And when it all gets a little too much, He picks me up and carries me, sheltered in His arms.

I am safe.

I am protected. 

I am loved. 

I can breathe again. 

This child knew his mama was bigger than his fears.  Because he trusted her to take responsibility for all the things that frightened him, he could let his guard down and rest.  After a year of dealing with these things on his own, he let go, and finally felt safe to play.

**There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place. Deuteronomy 1:31

LORD God, I thank You for this beautiful love story of adoption and healing.  I thank You that this child and this family were placed in each other’s lives.  You are the One who is truly in control, down to the minute details of my life.  Thank You for being willing to take all the scary things I face and using them for Your glory.  You intercede in places and situations I am not even aware I need help.   God, I am weary, worn down and exhausted right now juggling so many scary things.  Give me the strength to hunt down all my fears, all the lies whispered in my ear by satan, and all my worries and dump them in Your lap, leaving them there, trusting You to keep me safe.  Then give me rest, LORD.  Not only do You carry all my scary things, but You scoop me up and carry me when I cannot take another step.  I am safer in Your arms than anywhere on earth.  As I do my best to lay these things down, replace them with joy and peace.  Thank You for never turning me away when I call upon Your name.  Thank You for loving me as only You can and always having my very best at heart.  May all I do today bring You glory.  Amen

**When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?  Psalm 56:3-4

**In all their distress He too was distressed, and the angel of His presence saved them.  In His love and mercy, He redeemed them, He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. Isaiah 63:9

**I waited patiently for the Lord;
    He turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
    out of the mud and mire;
He set my feet on a rock
    and gave me a firm place to stand.

Psalm 40:12

I WILL CARRY YOU