This afternoon, I stopped by a friend’s house for a few
minutes. On her radio, I overheard something about “3 Republicans and 3
Democrats” and a vacancy. Probably because my subconscious had heard more than
that, I immediately wondered if one of the U.S. Supreme Court justices had
passed away. But the radio went on to other things, and I wasn’t sure. When I
opened Facebook shortly after coming back to my house, I found that yes,
Justice Scalia had died.
The first thing I saw indicating the news was this blog post shared by a friend. It makes a most excellent point. It is so easy for all of
us (all over the world!) to put so much of our hope and even faith in
government leaders. It's so easy for us to fear when it looks like things may
not go the way we wish they would.
I feel it in myself as I consider the American presidential
elections. I see it in my sisters and brothers here as they prepare for
Thursday's Ugandan general elections. The tension of not knowing how things
will turn out; the knowledge that the results of the elections will impact our nations
and our lives for the next few years.
Because we're not God, we cannot see the future. And when
our eyes are fixed on earthly things, the ‘unknown’ can so easily overwhelm us.
But God calls us to fix our eyes on JESUS - the Lord who is on His throne,
whose enemies will be made His foot stool (our sermon this morning was from
Heb. 1:4-14, about that very thing).
This morning in church, talking about the upcoming elections,
one of our Ugandan elders took us to Isaiah 33:22. It reads, "For the Lord
is our Judge, The Lord is our Lawgiver, The Lord is our King; He will save
us." This covers all the areas of government - the courts, the
legislative, and the executive. In all these areas, God is the Ultimate. And He
is the one who saves us, not any political leaders. There is no part of
anything that is outside of God's hands.
And yes, God calls us to pray for our leaders, that they
will be godly. Yes, I believe we should practice the privilege and right we
have to vote (I just sent my mail-in ballot for the Texas primary elections
back with a team!). But all of that should flow out of a heart that is at
peace, knowing that God is in control; not out of a heart of fear.
And even if Uganda were to explode into riots following the
results of Thursday's election; even if the ‘worst candidate’ were to be
elected president of the United States – that's part of God's plan. He allowed
it. And He will use it for His glory and purposes, which include our good.
That's what He promises. We do not need to fear.
Fear has been on my mind a lot, especially the last couple
months. Below is part of my most recent email newsletter to my prayer
supporters, which discussed the same topic.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I don’t know about you, but it is SO very easy for me to
fall into the many traps of fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of disapproval.
Fear of not being good enough. Fear of the stranger (a man) who met me in the
nearby village and then came to New Hope looking for me; who got my number
somehow and called me, wanting to meet up.
Over the past two years, I have also witnessed what a snare
fear can be to my Ugandan brothers and sisters. Sometimes, it seems as though
fear is their primary motivator. Fear of the ‘big man.’ Fearing to leave a
knife outside, because an attacker may come and use it to hurt you. Fear of
snakes, insects, lizards, owls.
In the past few weeks, we here at Kasana have had an object
lesson in fear. A health alert came through, after a couple of our kids and
staff tested positive for a disease. Based on initial information, some leaders
announced that extreme caution was needed (no shaking hands or hugging) and
that every person on site needed to be screened and vaccinated against this
disease.
As a result, people were naturally apprehensive and worried.
One of the people who had tested positive did not feel physically ill at all,
but was “heartsick” because of fearing the disease.
On a personal level, I fell victim too: I was fearful and worried.
On one hand, my vaccination was possibly no longer effective (too old). On the
other hand, when I had gone in for a physical while in Dallas the doctor had
been concerned about the results of one of the routine blood tests. She had called
me back in, mentioning that she was going to also test for the same disease that
was now apparently circulating our campus. I had given the resample the day
before I flew out, and not received the results yet.
But most of us had over-reacted. As more experts’ opinions
were sought, the situation no longer appeared so dire. The ways of contacting
the disease were much fewer than we had first been led to believe. Another
communication to staff was made, scaling back the level of concern and encouraging
people to live their lives normally.
The fear had already taken root, however. Especially for
those who had tested positive, now bearing that weight of concern even though
they felt fine.
Why is it that we so easily open up our hearts and minds to
the seeds of fear? Why is it that we so quickly forget or disregard the
faithfulness and trust-worthiness of our God? Why do we fear?
As I mentioned at the beginning of this section – it’s not
just about things like a disease. There are so very many other areas of our
lives in which we often allow fear to shape and control our thoughts and
actions.
This month has reminded me over and over, once again, that I
need to be consciously submitting my whole life to God – trusting HIM and His
plan. It has also shown me again how much I must be on guard against the fear
that so easily ensnares me. I pray that it does the same for my brothers and
sisters!
Oh, and I tested negative when I was screened here. The
repeated blood work in Dallas also came back perfectly normal. So in this case,
there was no reason for me to be so afraid.
Remember, Esther, that “perfect love casts out fear…” (1
John 4:18-19). Remember Who holds all things. Trust Him!
