Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness; I would hurry to find a shelter from the raging wind and tempest.” [Psalm 55:5-8 (ESV)]
Wearing a stuffed backpack and carrying his Teddy bear, little Tommy walked past his neighbor’s house. A short while later, he walked by her house in the same direction. He disappeared around the corner only to reappear several minutes later. As he was passing her house for the fourth time, the neighbor asked him what he was doing. When Tommy explained he was running away, she asked why he was only circling the block. “Because I’m not allowed to cross the street!”
Have you ever wanted to run away from your problems? I certainly have and so did David. Desperate, he wanted to escape his situation and yearned to be a dove that could just fly away to a far away place. Neither David nor I were any more successful at fleeing our troubles than little Tommy!
The difficulty with running away is that our problems usually come along with us while new ones loom right around the corner. When Hagar ran away from Sarah’s cruelty and Abraham’s disregard, the lone pregnant woman simply exchanged one set of problems for an even greater one—that of survival in the wilderness—and God sent her back. Hagar, of course, wasn’t the only one who chose to run rather than face her problem head-on. Adam and Eve were the first. After tasting the forbidden fruit, they foolishly thought they could escape facing God by covering themselves with leaves and hiding in the trees. They could run, but they couldn’t hide!
When famine struck and Abraham ran away to Egypt, he simply traded one problem for another when he lied about his marriage and allowed Sarah to be taken as one of Pharaoh’s wives. Naomi and Boaz jumped out the frying pan right into the fire when they escaped from famine in Judah by going to the hostile pagan nation of Moab. Boaz died there as did both of their sons and Naomi was left a penniless widow in a foreign land. Jonah, of course, is the poster boy of runaways. Unwilling to obey God and pronounce judgment on Nineveh, the prophet immediately went in the opposite direction and ended up in the belly of sea creature. If we’re running from God, we’re going in the wrong direction; Satan, however, is more than happy to provide us with transportation!
Refusing to face our problems is just another way of running from them. When Saul and his army refused to face Goliath, the giant didn’t go away; he returned every morning to taunt them and their God! Displeased by Jeremiah’s words, King Jehoiakim of Judah burned the prophet’s scroll and King Zedekiah imprisoned him. Nevertheless, ignoring Jeremiah’s prophecies of disaster didn’t keep it from happening!
Running from the truth doesn’t make it less true and running from a problem doesn’t make it disappear! Trials are inescapable in this fallen world and dealing with them is a necessary part of being a believer. Our challenges shape us into the people God wants us to be. Whether it’s financial difficulties, a troubled marriage, a difficult boss, a rebellious child, a medical issue, a loved one’s mental illness, or our own addiction, problems must be faced.
Our loving God is sovereign over our lives. Rather than run from the troubles He’s allowed to be placed in our lives, He expects us to trust Him enough to stand firm and boldly confront them while wearing the armor of God. Although we have a belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet, and sword, something is missing; there is no back plate to the breastplate of righteousness. I suspect that’s because we can’t win the Kingdom if we’re fleeing from the enemy!
Things were going well for Moses in Midian: he was happily married, with a family, and tending his father-in-law’s sheep. Then God interrupted his comfortable life with a burning bush and a major task: free the Israelites. Moses reacted the way most of us would by questioning God. Who am I to do this? Who do I say sent me? What if they don’t believe me? He then told God he simply wasn’t up to the task. Not one to be thwarted, God responded to all of Moses’ concerns. He would be with him, provide the words, the proof, and even Aaron to do the talking. In short, God promised to provide and so Moses obeyed.
I think of Jesus’ instructions every time I pack for a trip! Take only what I’ve got on my back and the one pair of shoes on my feet? He’s got to be kidding! When we’re taking a trip, wanting to be prepared for any eventuality, it seems like I pack everything but the kitchen sink!
Although the common position for prayer was standing, Jesus fell to His knees that night in the garden of Gethsemane. Luke describes Him as praying so intensely that His sweat dropped like blood. Having used the word hósei, meaning “as if it were, like, as, as though, or much like,” Luke may have meant Jesus sweat so profusely that it dripped from Him like blood. Nevertheless, Luke was a doctor who paid great attention to detail; he may have described hematidrosis, a rare medical condition in which the capillaries rupture causing blood to seep into the sweat glands and then out onto the skin. It’s caused by high blood pressure, a bleeding disorder, or extreme distress or fear, such as facing abuse, torture or death on the cross! Whether Jesus’ sweat poured off his body as if it were blood or He literally sweat blood, the Lord’s prayer was so intense that an angel came and strengthened Him.
Scripture tells us that Jesus had at least six siblings: James, Joses, Simon, Jude, and two unnamed sisters. Can you imagine what it was like being a brother or sister to Jesus? Both his conception and birth were proclaimed by angels, a star announced His birth, and magi from the East presented Him with expensive gifts. It’s tough to top that sort of entrance into the world.
Angels taking on bodily form and appearing to people certainly wasn’t an everyday occurrence. Although they are God’s messengers, the message angels bring can be good news or bad. While they may help God’s people as they did for Elijah and Daniel, angels also execute God’s judgment as they did when striking down the firstborn males in Egypt. I suspect Gabriel looked fiercer and more powerful than the elegant sweet angels hanging on our Christmas trees. When he arrived unannounced in the empty Temple sanctuary, Zechariah was overwhelmed with fear and, when he suddenly appeared in an empty room in Nazareth, Mary was troubled and perplexed. Not knowing whether he was on a mission of judgment or mercy, it’s no wonder both Zechariah and Mary were fearful. Gabriel began his visits by telling them both not to be afraid.
Devotions of the Heart 