That Annoying Fly and Our First Line of Defense

It is Saturday morning and my blog inspiration is slow in coming, Soon the creative juices start to flow. It starts with an annoying, over-sized, buzzing horse fly that overflew his bounds since the night before. I attempt tactical warfare -- swatting and spraying – but the beast lives on. Then, while sitting at my desk, he has the nerve to land on me. I think: “This is one of satan’s little imps on assignment to steal my joy and annoy me!” He, obviously, doesn’t know I am in “beast-mode” after a week of faith-filled injections of God’s Word at VBS. I grab my trusty flying insect spray and nail him. He is down for the count! Victory!

Now, it is time to head out for a 7 am appointment. I turn the ignition on my car. It does not start. All the lights, music, and a/c are working just fine. I know it's not the battery. I call my children for help, but, alas, this is their morning to sleep in. No cell phones on. One last attempt before canceling my appointment. I call my grandson who picks up the call. He is gracious to get me. It is worth the annoyance to have this precious few minutes together. He fills me in on his new real estate career and so much more. He waits while in my appointment. We go for breakfast at Chick-Fil-A where my granddaughter serves us. Then, we’re back to my home where I start to figure out what to do about my car. It’s Saturday and my auto repair shop is closed. I call and leave a message that I’ll have AAA to tow the car to them on Monday. I call and ask my family to please take me to church tomorrow because I’m on for serving this Sunday. I think “This is all a hassle with towing, a repair bill that I’m not looking forward to, and my family going out of their way for me, but I’ll get it done and soon this will be behind me!

I sit down for my morning devotion and prayer time when suddenly, I remember that on Thursday night I was the speaker for our Rejoice Healing Night at my church. I spoke about our “first line of defense” when trouble comes. Jesus used it for those who approached Him for healing or help. The example I used was from Mark 5 -- the story of Jairus, a synagogue leader, who came to Jesus begging Him to come and heal his dying daughter. After the interruption of a crowd and a woman with an issue of blood for 12 years who was healed as she touched the hem of His garment, Jairus and Jesus were on their way again. But Jairus was met by people from his home who said: “Don’t bother the Teacher – your daughter is dead!” Before Jairus could say a word, Jesus said to him: “Do not fear – only believe!” The first line of defense. The little girl was healed.

An "aha" hits me. I start praying for my car right here in my chair. “Nothing is impossible with You, God!" I go to my car and pray. “Please heal my car, Lord. I am not fearing. I am believing that nothing is impossible with You!” I turn the ignition. Nothing. But, something (actually, Someone), tells me to look to my right. I see that my car’s gear stick is in neutral – not in park. I put it in park, turn the ignition, the car starts -- and in my heart, I hear bands playing and choirs singing “Alleluia” and so am I!

Oh me. Had I not prayed and just pondered “What do I do? Who do I call? Where do I go?” instead of applying my "first line of defense", I would be waiting for the tow truck on Monday and no telling what charges would have been incurred. So many repercussions when, instead, I use Jesus' tips for quick answers to prayer: "Do not fear; only believe!"

I think back on my Saturday morning fly and car annoyances. I feel that way about the enemy of our souls – how annoying he can be. But, when we use the right plan of attack on him, he and all his tactics to “steal, kill and destroy” (John 10:10) will be swatted and lambasted out of our lives. Remember. Jesus and I told you so: "Do not fear; only believe!"

My First Line of Defense

Part of my training at Children's Hospital included knowing the “first line of defense” in case of fire or other emergencies. Knowing where the fire pulls and extinguishers are, as well as knowing the color codes and alerts in case of security issues.

In my personal life, I’ve also come to learn my absolute first line of defense when I’m faced with words that shake me to my core. I’ve heard: “Your daughter is diagnosed with cystic fibrosis!“ “Our house is on fire!” “Your mother only has hours to live!” “He was in a car accident!” "Your husband has Stage 4 cancer!” I wish that my first line of defense in all those instances had been “I will not be afraid. I believe that God has me and He will work all things for good!”

A great lesson came from one of my favorite Bible stories from Mark 5:35-36. It speaks of Jairus, a synagogue leader, who came to Jesus begging him to go with him to heal his daughter who was dying. As Jesus was going with him, some people from Jairus' house came saying “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the teacher any more?” Here’s my favorite line (the first line of defense) from Jesus to Jairus when He overheard their words: “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” I can even visualize that setting -- Jesus putting one hand up (“STOP -- don’t think!”) and the other hand with a finger up to his lips (“Shush -- don’t speak!”)

“Why bother?” Isn’t that what the naysayers and doubters say and isn’t that what the enemy of our souls wants us to say? It’s the whisper we hear when the bad news comes. "Give up. It’s Hopeless. I’m afraid. I can’t take this. I can't handle it alone."

Two little words change everything. “But Jesus.” He has a different message, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Don’t give up or let go of hope. Jesus is the Giver of life and it’s not finished until He says so. He took her by the hand and said: "Little girl, I say to you, get up!”. The girl stood up and began to walk around” (Mark 5:41-42).

Above, I quoted lines from “my story”. “Your daughter has cystic fibrosis!“ But Jesus -- that little girl was dramatically healed, has a 5-½ octave vocal range and daily lives to give the good news of Jesus. “Our house is on fire!” But Jesus -- those were words our daughter cried out to us when their home was burning. They were all safe, their insurance more than covered their losses, and rebuilt the home and have shared God's goodness to others. “Your mother only has hours to live!” But Jesus -- Mom recovered and lived a full life for another eight years. “He was in a car accident!” But Jesus -- our son survived what could have easily been a fatal car crash. “Your husband has Stage 4 cancer!” But Jesus -- gave him and me such peace that passed understanding throughout the journey, and he WAS healed when he graduated to heaven.

Jairus’ “little girl” was his “But Jesus” moment. What is your “little girl” today? What is your first line of defense when those riveting times come? My first line of defense is Jesus’ words “Do not be afraid. Only believe.” It's not over until He says "It's over!"

You Matter and You Are Loved!

You see all those leaves following from the trees? I’m here in Tulsa and the Oklahoma winds are blowing through with gusto which means the leaves must give way to the pull. Perhaps you see yourself as just another leaf on one of those trees that has seen its best days and is falling, falling, falling to the earth -- no longer feeling like you matter. Or maybe you feel like a snowflake in Colorado and you feel like no one really cares or notices you. You think that you really don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. We’re entering into the most wonderful time of the year – well, for some of us, that is. Others may be already dreading the holidays because it means you are alone and you just can’t help but feel discouraged and forgotten. I’ve said it before and it’s worthy of a repeat. You DO matter.

Our greatest example of One Who gave His all to show how much we matter is Jesus Christ. Here are just a few of His “You Matter” projects: The beggar -- blind Bartimaeus. He mattered enough for Jesus to stop and heal him. (Mark 10:46-52) The woman caught in the act of adultery and her accusers were about to stone her, but Jesus displayed she mattered when He said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more.” (John 8:1-11). How about Jairus’ child who was sick and died? Death could not stop Jesus from healing her because Jairus and the little girl mattered. (Mark 5:21-43) Peter denied even knowing Jesus, but the greatest display of love, forgiveness and that he mattered was when Jesus said to him, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.” (Matthew 16:18) Jesus’ ultimate act of showing us we matter, is when He laid down His life for you and me. The underlying fact is…..WE MATTER!

The most important thing we can do for others is to help them know they matter. Why does it matter? Because it matters to our Creator. He specifically planned each of us individually and uniquely with the funny little quirky smile we might have, the color of our hair and eyes, or the freckles on our nose. We are so special that His eyes are on us ALL the time. He knows everything about us. We're His hand-designed treasures and He even thinks about us ALL THE TIME....so shouldn't we think about others in a way that God uses our arms to hug them and our mouths to tell them how special and beautiful they are? After all, they're our sisters and our brothers in this royal family of God. I can't explain it in mere words, but God sure can! Just take a look at how He masterfully and lovingly planned us and created us! We are ALL so special to Him. I hope these words by the Psalmist convince you of that!

Psalm 139:1-5; 13-18 "O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit or stand. When far away, you know my every thought. You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to stop and rest. Every moment you know where I am. You know what I am going to say before I even say it. You both precede and follow me and place your hand of blessing on my head. You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit them together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! It is amazing to think about. Your workmanship is marvelous—and how well I know it. You were there while I was being formed in utter seclusion! You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was recorded in your book! How precious it is, Lord, to realize that you are thinking about me constantly! I can’t even count how many times a day your thoughts turn toward me. And when I waken in the morning, you are still thinking of me!"

Capital letters here to shout out loud and clear – YOU ARE LOVED and YOU MATTER!