Momentum for Monday, August 30th 2021

“…it came to pass.” (1 Thessalonians 3:4)

In speaking with a colleague at work the other day, he brought about a very insightful point and reminder. He said, "The Bible doesn't say it came to stay, it says it came to pass." Not only is he right, but 463 times right because that is precisely how many times the King James Version mentions it.

Worry, anxiety, and dread always have the looming fear over what is coming. Because we fear, we will procrastinate, hence prolonging whatever issue or situation we are avoiding from passing. So, we live with the stress until we finally face it. But procrastination has it's snowball effect. Ignoring one issue causes more issues until it becomes overwhelming (speaking from experience).

To all experienced procrastinators, present company included, we cannot keep doing this to ourselves- yes, it is our fault. The reality is, stress and pain are part of life. We cannot avoid inevitable stress. What we can do, however, is avoid additional stress that is self-inflicted.

The best way to inoculate yourself from fear, anxiety, and the like is by trusting God. It is overly-simple and yet ridiculously complicated all at once. But if you can't trust God to allow those looming things to come to pass, then it's all on you. And honey, we were simply not created to handle that amount of stress.

But, I would also be amiss, if I didn't mention another point. If we trust God to let it come, then we need to trust God to let it pass. Or put another way, let that junk go.

Some of us hold on to past memories like gorilla glue in frozen tundra. Holding on to yesterday is great for the good memories, but when it's all you focus on, then you never move on. You never heal. You never recover. You never grow.

If we trust God with our future. We also have to trust God with our past. In all honesty, it's not really trust if we only give part of ourselves to Him. Withholding in any regard or portion is not full trust. True trust requires all parts of us- past, present, and future. May God help us to let things come and let things go, because He is the only one that is strong enough and big enough to handle all of it.

“Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heart rely on him to guide you, and he will lead you in every decision you make.”

(Proverbs 3:5)