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Thoughts for a Woman's Heart |
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encouragement in things that matter |
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Sheer Panic
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"Sheer panic." Appropriate words for the feelings that are aroused when an event we fear is approaching. A day in court. A separation. A test. A medical diagnosis. Rampant emotions give way to distorted thinking and irrational reactions. We cry out for peace and for a measure of God’s grace, and God’s silence is deafening. And the day we waited for – or, more accurately, wanted to run away from – does come. And miraculously, so it seems, the peace and the grace we have pleaded for, also comes. Paul’s words are powerful when he records the promise of God, "My grace is sufficient for you." We read the words and yearn for the adequacy that is offered. Our desire is to go from "sheer panic" to grace and its ensuing peace in one simple, single step. We want the promise, but we overlook its context. Paul had begged God to change his situation. He understood weakness, distress, persecution, and difficulty. Why? Because he had experienced them. This man we see as a spiritual giant, knew how big he really was, but he also knew the strong sufficiency that his God empowered him with in his weakness. "Sheer panic" hopefully will take us to our knees before God, and God’s grace will come when it is most needed, just as it did for Paul. The stories of Christian martyrs witness to it. Men and women through the centuries have been tortured and killed because of their faith in Christ. Confronted in death with flames, swords, or guns, they prayed for their persecutors, burst forth in songs of praise, or boldly proclaimed the truth of God’s Word. Grace. And a peace that surpasses human understanding. When "sheer panic" describes our inner responses, cling to the God of grace, the Giver of Peace. In our weakness, He has promised, "My grace is sufficient for you." |
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— Bev |
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