How not to be a cat's lunch

Colossians 2:17 says that reality is found in Christ.


I recently found myself dealing with a confusing needless kind of stress that just pounced on me like a wild hungry cat. 
I know that fear and anxiety are not from God and so using that knowledge I tried to convince myself to stop worrying but as hard as I tried to convince myself to just stop I could not do it, I could not just switch the feelings off by forcing myself to stop.


I was missing something important.


Then on Sunday morning I remembered, while studying the 2nd chapter of Colossians with my bible study group earlier that week a phrase stood-up and said 'Hello Cindy' - "But the reality, however, is found in Christ." At the time I used the little treasure of a phrase to encourage women in my study to not let the stress of their life overwhelm them because always no matter how it seems our reality is in Christ, in all things our reality is found in him and who he says we are. We have to centre on him and keep that perspective to overcome that which would like to destroy us.  At the time it was powerful and useful thinking to me.


But now I was faced with a choice, was all that I said to others real for me too? Did I just say stuff to other people and then not apply it to my life?


I walked with God and wrestled in prayer over it. I discussed my reality with him and he reminded me of the real things of my life, of answered prayers and how real he is, of true peace that comes from him, and that he really will never let me just wander off when I am abiding in him. So I abided and I was  delivered from the overwhelming feelings. Though the threat of stress lingered it was no longer my reality.


"I will not be a hungry cat's lunch!"


Forcing myself to think different was not working because I needed to re-centre my thinking on my reality, Jesus, not on stopping the stress.


Stress  and pressures will be there but we can regain peace when we centre ourselves on Jesus our reality. I now have experience with this.


Don't be a cat's lunch.

#3 Brain Numbing Risk Averse Society

Some friends of mine from the Build a Village team are heading to El Salvador in a few days to stand in solidarity with their friends who have lost nearly everything in a recent disaster. When they told me about the risks and danger involved in this trip I was telling them not to go, "You are unwise. Use your head. Be safe" But they were certain God had called them no matter what the risks and dangers. The day after saying this to them I was sitting in a safe cushioned seat at the renov8 Church planting Congress, again listening to Juliet Kilpin. And she says "Fear is rapidly affecting the church." She was saying that God is not about safety he is about his mission, alerting people to his reign. Fear was a poison I had been letting in especially in this area of blessing my friend to enter the danger zone. ... I had forgotten. We live in a "brain numbing risk averse society", Juliet said and this is resonated with me because it is something I have long been ranting against. Society is becoming too dictating on the safety issue, too safe and too afraid to let us take risks, so much that it is slowly rendering us ineffective in God's mission and leaving us terrified to try anything new or different. I had been objecting to societies suffocating risk aversion yet unknowingly becoming part of encouraging it, which was made obvious as I let my fears rule my words for my friends going into El Salvador. You may not go to El Salvador or move far from your community but I want to encourage you, go out, take the risks, don't let fear stop you from reaching out with God's mission. That is what I was reminded of and will endeavor to live out. Even if we return in body bags let's go where God calls us.
Are you willing?