Monday, April 30, 2012

He stirs up the seas, and quiets the storms! A look at Isaiah 51.

Before I started writing this post, I grabbed my Bible and began praying. I really had nothing on my heart that was begging to be made into a blog post and because of this uncertainty, I prayed.  I asked God to lead me to a verse from which I could develop a post that would glorify Him and be something that you readers and I really needed to hear. I flipped my Bible open, landing on Isaiah 51:9-17, a verse that I can't remember studying before.

Now, I hesitate to use the word "ironic" because God is sovereign and He knows exactly what He's doing, therefore, nothing is truly "ironic." As I read through Isaiah 51:9-17, though, irony was the only term I could think of.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that I've written about the Lord delivering me from anxiety issues that had been harbored in my heart nearly my entire life. I know many of you struggle with this as well. It's incredibly easy for us to build an altar for our fears - no matter how rational or irrational they are. It's easy to give them all power over our lives, never begging God to intervene because we can "handle it" ourselves. How many times to we fear the world and all it entails only to push God, maker of the world and ruler of our lives, out of the way so we can engage in self-soothing round of worry. (Self-soothing and worry may sound like an oxymoron, but for those of us who panic incessantly, we know that worry is what makes us feel better - as well as worse - and that's why we do it). I think Isaiah 51:12-17 speaks to this. Read verses 51:12-14, below, and see if you agree,

"I, I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass, and have forgotten the Lord, your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, and you fear continually all the day because of the wrath of the opressor when he sets himself to destroy." 

When I sought the Lord for deliverance from the darkness of anxiety and the shadows cast by worries of this world, I was able to see the above illustration quite clearly. He allowed me to see. I was looking inward, as many of you may be today. The world constantly tells us to "look for the power within yourself," "aim to be the best you, you can be," "work on your image," "love yourself," etc. Looking inward, focusing on ourselves, only magnifies our altar of worry and discontent; and, the bigger and bigger we build our altars, the smaller and smaller we see God. Once we repent, however, and accept that God is the only one who can lift the darkness of anxiety or any other stronghold that's keeping us, we can enjoy His full majesty once again - or for the first time, perhaps. He frees us! The following verse (v. 14) sketches out the very result of faithfulness and repentance I've described:

"He who is bowed down shall speedily be released;
he shall not die and go down to the pit, 
neither shall his bread be lacking."

What a beautiful and comforting truth.

I realize that I've posted similar write-ups on this blog, but there's really no limit on illustrating His glory through posts such as these, is there? It's also important to remember that we can be right back in the darkness if we allow our focus on Him to fallow. He is the one who comforts us. It is written, and it is true. If you have anxiety or any other stronghold, remember that He is the one who stirs the seas (v. 15) and He will calm the storms of your life; just seek Him.

If you feel that you've been sucked into the pits of this world, I would love to pray for you to receive deliverance today. Feel free to email me: tess [@] tapestryofthemundane [.] com (brackets and spaces removed) or leave a note in the comments box below so other readers can pray for you, too.

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Grace Laced MondaysThis post is linked up to Grace Laced MondaysBetter Mom Mondays and Just for Fun Fridays

Hop on over to to those awesome sites to see who else is sharing.



8 comments:

  1. "Looking inward, focusing on ourselves, only magnifies our altar of worry and discontent; and, the bigger and bigger we build our altars, the smaller and smaller we see God."

    I love that sentence and your use of the term "altar". You are so right!

    I'd love to know more about your deliverance from your anxiety. I know I've read bits & pieces here, but a single post on your deliverance (or do I have mommy brain this morning?). Did it happen as a result of switching churches & being with your small group? Was it a slow progression? Or was there a single instant when you recall the depths of your need for a Deliverer? Did your children help in wiggling you out of it?

    You know, that kind of stuff...

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    1. Thanks, Michelle. I guess I feel like I go on about this a lot. Possibly I was put through it to go on about it for God's glory. I'd love to tell you about being delivered. I'll give you the CliffsNotes version here in the comment box...

      The anxiety I experience was life-long. It went from small irrational fears that would come and go, to me losing handfuls of hair, daily, for many months straight. I thought I had a brain tumor because the hair loss was so extreme. Of course I would think that, right? It took on many different forms from hypochondria to generalized anxiety and OCD.

      Though I had been a Christian for many years, I never realized that this was a spiritual issue, a sin issue. Everything you mentioned above certainly aided in getting over this stronghold in one way or another. Though I won't give credit to any earthly person - especially myself - for getting me out of this, around the same time I was relieved, I read Praying God's Word by Beth Moore. It's about being released from spiritual strongholds. This book is light on the Beth Moore and HEAVY on the scripture.

      It really taught me how to pray, from my heart, like I'd never heard before. It taught me how to seek Christ instead of myself. This constant interaction I now had with Christ is what relieved my burdens. I do remember getting up one morning around the same time I was going through this study and feeling like I just woke up...in my own life. Very odd. Very awesome. I would recommend it to anyone who is at a loss like this. The Breaking Free series was
      recommended to me by a friend at Church. We were talking about food addiction issues and I decided to pick up a copy. It turns out that this book spoke to me on many more levels than just that.

      Thank you for commenting and caring. :)

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    2. I remember the day that you slipped into OCD with the birth of your first child. Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but I wish that I would have reached out to you. It's all in God's timing though. He wanted you to experience the anxiety for a span of time so that you could see the work of His hand in bringing you out.

      I love the work of God's hand in molding and shaping you into a vessel of His grace. May God be glorified!

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    3. You are correct. When I became a mom, OCD took over and I seemingly checked-out. OCD took over more of my life, resources, and time than you could even fathom. As you said, the Lord's timing is perfect. For that, I'm grateful. For the trials, I'm grateful. I've only grown closer to the Lord bc of them. Thankfully, the scars from these challenges are only on my hands...marred by over washing...not on my heart; it's been healed and washed clean! As far as any opportunity you think has been missed for discipleship, don't worry. You've planted some seeds here and I'm quite thankful.

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  2. Well Written as always Tess! I have struggled with anxiety for decades too. It was humbling when I realized it was a sin and trust issue against the Lord. One of my current memory verses is: Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. (1Peter 5:6,)

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    1. Thank you for your comment, Jen. Thank you, especially for the verse! I'll keep that one close for sure!!

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  3. Tess, it is wonderful to know you better. I have so much more to share than time or space permits here, but I really can relate (on a personal level) but also through the extensive mentoring and counseling I've done in ministry...and I'm overwhelmingly anchored to the truth that our greatest need is spiritual, not circumstantial, emotional, or psychological. Praise the Lord for your testimony here!

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    1. Thank you, Ruth! Any time you'd like to share, feel free to email me! I'm so glad that Michelle told me about your site and link up. It's been such a blessing!

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Have something to share? I'd love to hear it!