This article first appeared on The Inspired Woman Blog |
Covid-19 caused a lot of uneasiness in our world. My parents are in their seventies, and I asked them if they had ever seen a quarantine like that, and of course they answered no, never.
There were so many unprecedented things going on, it was hard to know what to believe. Our local newspaper published a short column from a pastor during that time assuring his denomination the mandated government quarantine was not a conspiracy, a “us versus them” scenario that they needed to fear. And he was right. But be cautious: you don’t need to believe everything.
You and I are flesh creatures. This means we have a soul that houses our mind, will, and emotions. And if we lean heavily on everything our flesh is telling us, we will find ourselves in fear, anxiousness, worry, anger, frustration, and doubt — all of which are fueled by our enemy, not God.
The Bible is clear.
Paul said, in one of many places, “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish…” (Galatians 5:16-17). I won’t bore you with the long list of things the flesh is capable of, but I do want to remind you that listening to the flesh will not help you. You cannot thrive in times like this if you are only listening to the voice of fear, doubt, worry, etc.
Jeremiah gives us this encouragement instead: “Blessed [with spiritual security] is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord. For he will be [nourished] like a tree planted by the waters, that spreads out its roots by the river; and will not fear the heat when it comes; but its leaves will be green and moist. And it will not be anxious and concerned in a year of drought nor stop bearing fruit” (Jeremiah 17:7-8, AMP).
The voice of fear will lie to you. You cannot listen to fear.
The voice of doubt is harmful. You cannot listen to doubt.
Even the voice of reason is a deceiver. You cannot navigate your life in the realm of reason only.
You must plant yourself near the rivers of living water– the presence of God that is found in prayer and meditation of His Word. The promise is that those whose hope is in God will find security and confidence (no fear).
You can’t believe everything.
It’s so tempting to listen to news reports all day, or scroll through social media looking for updates and changes. Be sure you are tipping the scale of information in favor of what God has said, and who He is.
When Peter told Jesus he knew He was the Christ, Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17). In other words, the flesh doesn’t know how to reveal real Truth, so don’t lean heavily upon your flesh for answers. Jesus later said, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41).
I’ll close with this reminder: The Bible says those who “…live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death [it’ll kill you with fear, worry, anxiety, etc], but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:5-6, my paraphrase).
So no, you can’t believe everything your mind, will, or emotions are telling you.
Plant yourself in God’s Word and in His presence through prayer and worship. I promise you will not only find peace, rest, and hope in strange times, but you’ll be a vessel God can use to strengthen others as well.
