Paranoia Will Destroy Ya

Those of you who have read my past two blogs, know that they were about fear. Well, it's turning into a series, because it's still coming up quite frequently in my everyday encounters or conversations with people.

As some of you know, I work in a pharmacy. And I'll tell you what, if I hear one more flu shot question--I think I might scream! The majority of our phone calls have been regarding the new H1N1 shot. Are we going to be giving it or not, if we have it, why aren't we using it?
A few people have actually been quite nasty about it, too.

But that's what fear does. When we are afraid of something, sometimes we tend to lash out at it or everyone and everything around us. Other times, we allow allow the thing we are most of afraid of, to paralyze us. So much, that we just stand there and watch it take over us. My husband is the one who introduced to me to the quote above, "Paranoia will destroy ya". And it's so true.

You ever wonder why God refers to us as sheep? Well, one reason I think, is because we are like them in so many ways. Sometimes sheep can be really dumb. Not saying that God thinks we are dumb, but sometimes we choose to do some really dumb things.

Sheep tend to wonder off, away from the safety of the herd, away from the protection of their Shepherd. Usually, it's because something appetizing looks really good, and they allow their stomaches to lead them away. Then another patch of even greener grass further away attracts their eye, and before they know it, they've allowed themselves to get lost.

And guess whose been lyinig in wait, with teeth bared, saliva dripping from his mouth and his deadly stare trained on that easy prey?

Satan. That yellow-eyed, mangy, rabid looking wolf.

And just like a lost sheep, our knees lock and we get this deer-caught-in-the- headlights look on our face. And we allow our fear to paralyze us until it's too late and the wolf starts to devour us.

Satan's crafty. He knows just what to use to try and get us to turn away from our protection, our Great Shepherd. Right now, it's the swine flu epidemic. It's put everyone into a crazy fit of fear. And I just want to shout it out to all who will hear: Don't you know?! Don't you know that one of God's many names is The Great Physician? Don't you know that we are to fear nothing but Him, He who loves us and sent the perfect Lamb, His own Son, the Great Shepherd, to die for us? Why are we still fearing? If we have given our lives to Him--then we have nothing to fear. Not even death.

We have been allowing Satan to sap the Joy of each new day from our lives, because we listen to his lies. We accept the fears he places before us. It's time to stop it.

Now, I know there are some of you who have already had the swine flu, or maybe have it right now, or know somebody who has it. I am praying that you or they recover quickly. Remember, healing is ours for the taking. God's already offering it--we just tend to forget to receive it.

When sin entered the world, so did sickness and death. It's something that has touched everyone of our lives in some way. But when we have Jesus, oh death--where is your sting? So even in sickness--yes we may suffer for awhile and be miserable--but we have nothing to fear.

Before His own death, which he knew was just hours upon him, Jesus comforted His disciples, saying to them, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me."

So why don't we do that? Let's give over all our fears to Him, and let not our hearts be troubled by them anymore. And instead, let's choose to trust in Him and continue to do the work He has called us to do without fear.

Love in Christ Jesus,
Alyssa