But what if.....
I can 'what if' with the best of them. Really. You should go backpacking with me. It's comical. Every backpacker has calculated the amount of water necessary to keep them hydrated. I do the same..... and then I begin my 'what ifs'. But what if the creek has dried up so I can't refill my supply? I better bring more water. But what if my water filter breaks so I can't filter the water? I better bring some water purification pills. But what if there's some mutant form of Giardia that my filter and purification pills can't kill? I better bring equipment to boil all the water. But what if....
I don't expect the worst to happen; but if it does, you better believe I've prepared for it.
I used to think that all my over-analyzing was simply me being really smart and well prepared to handle whatever life throws at me. What I know now, is that I often feel ill equipped to handle really anything life throws at me, therefore I 'what if'. If I can just think ahead to every possible scenario, leave no stone unturned, then surely NOTHING will catch me off guard and leave me feeling unsure or vulnerable!
The truth is, all my 'what ifs' are nothing more than a display of my lack of trust in God.
If you are a fellow over-analyzer you can relate to one of the biggest recorded 'what if-er' in the Bible. Moses. I think Moses and I would have been friends.
Read Exodus 3-4, there's so much redemption and power in God's heart and His relentless pursuit for freedom for His people.
In short, God shows up in crazy, burning bush, undeniably God, kind of ways and charges Moses with a seemingly impossible task. To bring the oppressed Israelites out of slavery.
Immediately Moses recognizes the reality of his brokenness and inadequacies and he sees the significance and enormity of the task at hand, and Moses' analyzing begins.
Who am I? What if they ask me who sent me? What if they don't believe me? What if they say You didn't appear to me? What if I don't know what to say or how to say it? What if I make a fool out of myself and fail miserably?
Oh I can just see the wheels in his head spinning! "I get that you're God and you just did this crazy miraculous talking burning bush thing, but do you realize who we're dealing with? IT'S PHARAOH! And..... it's....well, it's............ me. I can't just waltz in there and free the Israelites. It's not that easy! I am just a messed up man! What can I really do? Really! I know you're God, but I honestly think you got this one wrong. You need to find someone else. Haven't I proven to you that I can't be trusted? This is too hard."
And after all the 'what ifs' and fears and doubts and anxiety, the truth is, Moses was right.
He was just a man. He probably did have a hard time communicating clearly. There was a high likelihood that Pharaoh wouldn't believe him. All of that was true...... but God.
BUT GOD!
Do you know what God said in response to Moses' 'what ifs'?????
"But I will be with you..." Exodus 3:12a
Moses' 'what ifs' were figuring without God. His eyes scoured the circumstances, collecting facts rather than setting his eyes on the One who charged him to go. The one who promises to go before us and to come behind us. To hem us in. To never leave us or forsake us. To be with us.
We simply aren't all sufficient. We're human. We're broken. We can't do it. BUT GOD.
God doesn't call us to more and not give us the resources necessary to see it through. He sees the whole picture. He is moving and orchestrating things at this very minute behind the scenes for your ultimate good. He is trustworthy.
"Those who know Your name, put their trust in You, for You, OH LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You." Psalm 9:10
When Moses asked God what he should say when the people ask "What is the name of the god who sent you?" God came back with the ultimate answer to all of our 'what ifs'. His name.
I AM.
He is I AM! He is everything! He is before all things, after all things, and reigns over all things! He is, I AM!!
That was God's response to Moses' 'what if' questions.
And it's God's response to your 'what if' questions too.
He is, I AM!
In God's declaration of His name, I AM, we can trust Him and find rest from our endless 'what ifs'.
He not only created everything that exists, but he sustains it. HE SUSTAINS IT! That means you, my friend. He sustains you.
NOTHING came before Him, meaning He depends on NOTHING to exist. He is.
His character is not evolving by the influences of circumstances or actions of others. Which means you can trust Him. He is and always will be. The same yesterday, today and forever.
Oh that we would know His name. That the knowledge of His name would result in us trusting Him with abandon. That we would say "Yes" to whatever God is calling us to, no matter how impossible and scary it might seem.
Today, right now, trade in your 'what ifs' for what is. What is and always will be?
I AM.
*******************************************************
Why do you 'what if'? Fear of thee unknown? Fear of failure? Fear of being found out? Fear of losing control?
Where are your eyes? Searching the circumstances? Collecting the facts? Or set intently on the One who has called you?
What has God called you to that you need to say YES to today?
What is true about your God? Meditate on the truth that God is I AM.
This is good and so needed. So much of my anxiety is rooted in What ifs…fear of what might happen. Reminds me of when Peter and the disciples think Jesus is a ghost…believing the worst possible scenarios are more true than the God they walked with who can calm seas and walk on water. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDelete