Fear Not!

Sometimes in life it's hard to make decisions.  Do we build a house? How do we spend our money? When do we have kids? Do we have more kids? Do we change jobs or careers?  When do we get married?...you know, all those BIG decisions that some people seem to make so easily.  In our home, decisions are met with the the questions, Is it God's will for us?  The question is easy to ask.  The answer is what seems to be hard to conclude.  What I've been noticing lately is that big decisions seems to bring a sense of fear to me.  Fear of making the wrong decision and so then, I just avoid, or over think it to the point of just not making a decision at all and staying where I'm safe, or think I'm safe.  The problem with this is that I'm not moving by faith but rather being controlled by fear! 
This made me think of when angels of the Lord appeared in the Bible, they would often say, "Fear not"or something along those lines.  These angels were messengers from God, bright and shining with all of God's glory.  Those they were appearing to where often described as trembling, or terrified.  But the angels were saying, fear not....fear not God's glory, fear not what He has sent me to tell you, fear not what is about to happen to you, fear not walking the path that God has set before you.  When an angel came to Mary to tell her she would bear a son who would save world, she had faith in God's plan to use her.  Surely she was fearful of how she would be looked at, and of what was happening to her but she was reminded to not fear. 
While we may not have angels appearing before us telling us what to do and what is going to happen to us, we still have God nudging us, placing burdens on our hearts, and the pieces of our life puzzles seemingly falling into place with what seems like little effort from us.  That's when it is clear that our faith is moving us in the right direction and that our decisions have been made according to His will.
The decisions I make are about more than me.  It's about moving by faith and not being made stagnant by fear, and being an example of this to those around me. 

Luke 1: 30-33  But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Luke 2:9  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Just Keep Pedaling!

I've heard people say,"things were going great and all of a sudden the wheels fell off."  This saying has new meaning to me.  I headed out with my family for a bike ride this week.  The day before this I had trouble with my new big, cushy seat not being adjusted quite right.  But on this day, I was ready to ride! It was a great ride for about a mile.  As I was pedaling along, enjoying the country evening, I suddenly had a strange, frantic moment.  Something wasn't right! Oh, I only had one pedal! Yep, my left pedal had totally fallen off and was laying in the road.  Have you ever tried pedaling a bicycle with one pedal?? I'm here to say that it's humanly impossible.  My sweet husband only laughed a little and then went right to work at trying to tighten the nut that holds the pedal in place.  After he got it fixed, we were headed back on our journey.  While I was enjoying the scenery, I was more cautious and almost waiting for the other shoe to drop, or the pedal to fall off again.  Unfortunately, we didn't get too far and the pedal fell off.  Out of frustration and fear of the same thing happening again, I headed for home.  I was done.  Continuing on our ride could mean that I would have to stop and put my pedal on several more times, and even risk wrecking my bike. 
After returning home, I got to thinking how many times the pedals, and wheels, fall off in life and how people handle it differently.  I was frustrated and done trying to ride any further.  Once we returned home and the pedal was fixed, I had lost the motivation and enthusiasm I had when I started the ride earlier.  My lack of motivation and desire changed my whole family's feelings.  They went from wanting to ride again, to hitting the couch with me. 
Life has moments when "the pedals fall off" and we lose momentum and desire to keep moving.  How we handle these moments can affect not just ourselves but our loved ones, coworkers, friends, and even strangers.  When you are trying ot pedal with just one pedal, remember that God's pushing the other pedal. Only with God would continuing with one pedal be possible.  Just keep pedaling!!

Luke 1:37 For nothing is impossible with God.