It’s Monday. If you are a new reader to my site, this is the day in which we feature a question from a younger lady on xanga, which has been messaged to me privately. The questions are for any experienced and/or older lady to answer. I came up with this idea after meditating on Titus 2, in which the older ladies are encouraged to teach/encourage the younger ladies. As women who believe and trust in Jesus Christ, we are all on this pilgrim journey together. So often our society tricks us into thinking independently, rather than as a family or community. Let’s unify. Let’s edify one other and show the world we are Christ’s own beloved ones. . . .by our love. Don’t let an opportunity to be a blessing pass you by~whether here on xanga, or in your day to day life.
We all go through hard times in our life. Can you give us an example of when you have trusted God during times of worry and fear?
What Godly principles have helped you through the times of fear and worry? In what ways were you or your family blessed once you were over that worry?
This question made me think about Proverbs 31:25
“She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.”
Laughing is quite the opposite of worry, isn’t it? I love that!
Good to be Home 
I think there are times when all you can do is cling to the promises of God. It is so important to work daily on your relationship with Him. Get to know Him. If you really know Him, you will know that He is totally trustworthy and that you can run to Him with anything. I have been through several serious health crisis, where I faced surgery with no assurances from the doctors if the outcome will be good or bad. That’s when it is so wonderful to know that you can put yourself in God’s capable hands and trust Him to do what is best. I cannot tell you the peace that held my heart as they put the mask on my face and I fell asleep. He held me! God! I knew no matter what happened, I was safe.
Jesse and I have gone through medical, financial, and step-child issues that have caused lots of scary turmoil. In our marriage, we keep in mind the Adam & Eve story and WHY they were created – to be of support, one to the other. At Jesse’s weakest moments, I’ve encouraged him with God’s Word and promises. He has done the same for me. It seems like when things look the bleakest, we cling to each and pray. You wanted an example . . . The last ordeal we went through was last winter. Jesse is in the lawn mowing business. There’s no work from November through March. Last year, we took in his brother-in-law (he needs “care”) from January through March. Jesse didn’t hold a job during those winter months. We had nothing saved from his lawn business: we *always* have money put away for winter. How would we survive the winter???? We had a horrible ice storm in November and many customers called him to cut down trees or limbs (a VERY lucrative business!). He also bought several used vehicles, did minimal fixing up to each one, and sold them for an incredible profit. God provided, but we prayed FIRST for His provision (not knowing at all how that would come to pass). We knew that He cares for the sparrows and lilies and says we shouldn’t worry; so, we (mainly Jesse) tried not to worry and I encouraged him by telling him I KNEW we’d be fine if we trusted God. Ends up – we were MORE than fine!
I don’t see a way to edit my comment at your site. I should have written, “THIS year we took in his brother Jan – March” . . .
I’m not sure if I count as an older woman, but I will share a faith-building experience my husband Ray and I had about 6 years ago. I was about 7 months pregnant with our first child. I was working at a college where my dept had already found and hired my replacement who would be arriving in weeks. Ray is a computer programmer and had a successful job at a small “Dot Com” company here in the Chicago area. One morning, IRS representatives arrived and closed down the company — just like that. To our surprise, Ray’s employer had not been trustworthy in paying his taxes. When a company is closed in the manner, there is no COBRA insurance for employees. Nothing. So we prayed about it — trusting that God would provide for us. We also began to think through a plan of action. We quickly transferred over to the insurance offered by my job which would at least last a couple of months. And we thought about the “worst case scenario” — a long period of unemployment for Ray which was the typical experience during that time of the Dot Bomb Era. If this happened we determined that we could be okay living in my In Laws basement bedroom eating Mac and Cheese if necessary. It wasn’t appealing, but it was doable.
We continued praying for God’s direction as Ray embarked on a large scale job search and interviewed for a Jr. Level position which was well below his skill level. He was willing to take it though just to provide for his family. He was hired and quickly promoted at this new company which has ultimately given him so much more opportunity for career growth and further promotions. He continues at this job today and has the blessing of truly enjoying his work there.
In the months of unemployment, we saw God provide for us, and we experienced peace in the promise that He would meet our needs. Each of us are ALWAYS fully dependent on Him, but it seems that there are times in life He allows us to FEEL our dependence more so that we can learn to more fully RELY on Him.
Trusting the Lord in times of fear seems to have been a theme since my husband and I married a little over a year ago. Shortly after our engagement we visited a world-renowned specialist about his condition of Crohn’s and discovered it was much more critical than we realized (although it almost claimed my husband’s life the year before we married, we thought he was past that). This was in February, and this news prompted us to reschedule our wedding from August 11 to three months earlier, so that I could accompany my husband on an out-of-state internship and help him with a radical diet he was assigned to follow. As it turned out, my husband ended up in the emergency room a few days before our wedding – we didn’t even know if we would be able to get married that weekend as planned. The wedding did work out, but not the summer internship…we ended up being newlyweds and unexpectedly without income for nearly four months as my husband basically was on “bed rest.” When it was time for us to begin our last semester of school in August, once again we were faced with a health/financial crisis as our doctor insisted on the need for immediate surgery. Having surgery would have prevented my husband from finishing school that semester, and his tuition stipend was our only source of income! Rather than go without income for another five months, we took the risks associated with postponing surgery and finished school, with my husband’s health being very fragile all the while. After graduation we somehow managed to make our move to the location of my husband’s new job, 1000 miles away from anything or anyone familiar. I became very sick during the move and to our surprise, we were expecting our first little one. We were so excited, but the pregnancy was debilitating for several months as I was confined to bed. During part of this time my husband experienced a “flare up” period and was also bed-ridden. It was very scary for both of us, being beyond the help of family or friends and also unable to help each other. The health crises we have experienced in our marriage have been ongoing for the most part and have forced us to trust God in many ways. Physical strength and health impact so many areas of life – emotional, social, and financial, as well as physical and spiritual. It has been a challenge for me to learn to fully trust the Lord during hard times and not give in to worries or fears about my husband, our future, how the bills will be paid, etc. Being completely helpless to do anything but pray in a difficult situation – that is not an easy place to be, humanly speaking. What has helped us most during these times is, #1 – Remember that Jesus IS WITH us; we are not alone, and He will remain true to His promises, so cling to them. #2 – Pray together, and sing praises together (like David did in the Psalms). Singing even when we didn’t feel like it has helped encourage our spirits! #3 – Stay connected to at least one person who can help remind you of God’s love and promises.How have we been blessed through these times? We’ve grown much closer to the Lord AND to each other, as at times that was all we really had. Our faith has also been strengthened as we’ve seen God miraculously provide. For example, even during our most difficult times, financially, we have managed to pay all our bills and are currently free of debt. That is truly a miracle for us! (My husband is also a firm believer in the principle of tithing!) James 1 says to “count it all JOY” when you enter trials…remember, CALM SEAS NEVER MADE AN EXPERIENCED SAILOR!
I am not sure I am considered an “Older women” but I do feel experienced in this area.
When we went through our ordeal with our daughter Makenna, God showed us so many things. As a mom, I could never imagine having a perfectly healthy child who was completely paralyed with in 24 hours. One of the worst parts was that it actually caused Makenna a great deal of pain to be touched. So as a mother, all I wanted to do was hold her in my arms and tell her it was going to be ok, but I couldn’t do that.
Believe it or not, we found a great deal of comfort in humor. You may wonder how you can laugh at a time like that but we say, why not laugh? Why not have joy? Knowing that we had a choice, we choose faith. Even when it was so heartbreaking, we chose to have faith.
Now, three years later, we are experiencing the blessings that have come from this. First, Makenna is nearly 100% healed! She is a testimony of God’s goodness and mercy. Also, the book I wrote has been able to minister to hundreds of people which is ALL for God’s glory. I couldn’t begin to take any credit on that. Still, hearing people’s stories and knowing that somehow the words in that book have been a blessing to them amazes me. We have really, truly found “Joy in the Morning”.
One of the most trying times of my adult life was when I lost my job at the hospital. I was fired from my nursing job due to a miss understanding and a very stressful situation. I at that time was working part-time and was expecting our 2nd child. My husband and I were attending our church – but I would not say now that we were living for the Lord. We were not living a sinful life by most standards – but we were not living with God first. My job loss was unexpected and we had been spending our incomes just about as fast as it came in. This was a crisis for us.
On my way home from being fired Iliterally cried out to God for guidance -I had to face my husband and explain this situation…and also help figure out what we were going to do from here. I felt a calm steady voice telling me that everything would work out. My husband was shocked to hear that I no longer had a job…but was very supportive as well. I knew that I never wanted to work in a hospital environment again. We turned to God in this time of need – we searched the Bible for direction for what we were to do. We started tithing (even though we didn’t know where all the money would come from to pay the bills). We started truly studying the Bible – I read through the Bible in search of knowing God more. (Danish Doll said that we can find comfort in knowing God more —That is sooo true!)
I started telling God that I would do what He wants for me – not what I would like to do. In the course of a year – I was asked to teach children’s church, I had my baby, I grew to know God more fully, we paid off much of our debt, and I finally found another job that I still have to this day. I wouldn’t trade any of the trial to live like I was before this crisis happened. SO now when I start to get nervous of worry about something – I look back to where I was and how far I have come in the last 10 years and see that even if trials do come – everything works together for Good – to those who love (and know) HIM! That is the greatest blessing – the comfort and peace that we get from knowing that we can trust in God’ promises….but we first have to know what those promises are.
I will be looking forward to coming back and reading more comments later. I hope you’re having a great day, Shan. Love you.
These answers have been good to read.
wow ~ i could give circumstance after circumstance of choosing to trust God rather than giving in to fear and worry… i’ll share the one i was struggling w/ TODAY!!!money. :)Six years ago the Lord led my husband to begin his own landscaping/ construction business… talk about hand to mouth – – there’s been so many times when the hand hasn’t even gotten to the mouth because there were too many bills that ate up all the money before groceries could be bought!! 🙂 … i’ve struggled many, many times sitting back watching as my friends seemed to pass me by when it came to success ~ bigger homes. bigger paychecks. fancier vacations. nicer things. here’s a few of the areas the Lord has taught me/ IS teaching me about all this…1. God’s measures success so much differently than the world – HIS blessings are often NOT material things… and I must keep my focus on what is eternal. “The blessings of the Lord they make us rich – and He addeth no sorrow with it.” 2. Worry is SIN. I really believe that… it is allowing the enemy to have control of my mind. it is allowing myself to be ruled by my emotions – not the Spirit of God. and “God has not given us the spirit of fear; but power. of love. and peace of MIND!”3. The Lord wants me to live one day at a time. anything beyond today overwhelms me.. causes me to rush into, “what if?” Each morning I pray and thank the Lord for giving me THIS DAY – and I know He’ll give me grace to face whatever comes. “His grace IS sufficient – He is a very PRESENT help!”when I choose to take God at His word – and believe His promises.. and I do believe it is a CHOICE we make.. the peace that floods my soul is unbelievable. and my husband and I have concluded – if we never have a huge savings account in the bank. if we never take that dream vacation to Disney. if we live in a tiny house forever – YET, there’s peace in our hearts. Joy in our home. the presence of God is known and felt here… THESE are the riches we want our children to have and long for in their own lives~
I have a book to recommend that we are studying in our women’s Bible study at church…”Calm my Anxious Heart” by Linda Dillow…it’s been a great book
I find that reading the Psalms helps me tremendously with worry and fear. To laugh at the days to come is definitely something to meditate on ~ I have also been known to literally run to my closet (where I can be alone with the Lord) and cry out to Him during times of distress. He has NEVER let me down!
Praying is the best way to get through anxiety and fear. In James he says “You have not because you ask not.” We must be sure our heart is right before we pray….clear of any hindrances to the Lord hearing. Psalm 66:18 tells us that “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord wil lnot hear me.”
It is always best to find a scripture or promise in the Bible, meditate on it and pray it back to the Lord. In the book Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ, Jeanne Guyon talks about reading one verse at a time, meditating on it and praying it back to the Lord. That is a very effective way to pray. In Joshua 1:8 it says, “….meditate day and night….for then you wil lmake your way prosperous and have good success.”
A few more scriptures I thought of…..John 16:24 (about prayer) Jesus said to ask that you would receive so that your joy would be made full. He wants us to have joy and what more could we ask for than what He has promised in His Word. Standing on His promises…but we have to know them first! ~: )
II Corinthians 10:5 tells us how to deal with fearful or anxious thoughts of worry….”Casting down imaginations (reasonings and arguments) and every high think that exalts itself against the knowledge of God and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ….”
** But the icing on the cake is Phillippians 4:6-8 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, WITH THANKSGIVING, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Verse 8 is so important for those thoughts of worry or fear….”Finally, whatever things are TRUE, whatever things are NOBLE, whatever things are JUST, whatever things are PURE, whatever things are LOVELY, whatever things are of GOOD REPORT, if there is any VIRTUE and if there is anything PRAISEWORTHY – MEDITATE ON THESE THINGS.”
~That’s all I have in my notes : ) Rejoice and laugh at the days to come! God is good!