David and I arrived at the Atlanta airport and went through passport control. Went so smoothly that we both remarked how different that was from Africa. We were exhausted, as we normally are after sitting in an airplane for about sixteen hours and my head hurt, but not too badly.
When we got to the luggage carousel, we stood for a long time looking for our four bags. They did not come. We were among a large cluster people whose luggage did not make it. So we stood in line to report the missing pieces.
There was a lot in those bags. Over 300 knitted African animals that my Zulu ladies had made, important meds, clothes, papers, journals that we needed. If I allowed my thoughts to go where they wanted, anxiety would seep in. No doubt!!
Opportunity for Wisdom
When something happens in our lives, we get the opportunity to react or respond. If this is a test, there will be temptations connected with it, and part of the victory over temptations is slowing things down so that we can think – responding rather than reacting.
Will I take a second to remember that this challenge is common to man, that God is faithful, that He has checked that I can handle it with His help, and that He is watching me? If I reach out to Him for wisdom and carefully choose to respond with wisdom, there’s a way of escape so I can bear it (I Corinthians 10:13).
But if I am enticed by a spike in my own desire to react rapidly, I take no time to regain God’s perspective, or use any wisdom filter. I just fall into the floodwaters of my adrenaline or anxious thoughts. The repetition of unchecked thoughts and unfiltered reactions brings a life called “death” (James 1:14-15).
Often we don’t consciously think about how we respond. We don’t quickly recount God’s promises. We don’t consider what would be wise. We just react. Anxiety just happens so quickly and naturally. Thoughts come like kamikazes, dive-bombing into your mind with great force.
What if I can’t handle that?
Will I actually have to wait on the Lord with all this ambiguity?
Has the Lord forgotten about this one?
The Lord does not truly like me?
Maybe God wants to hurt me? He’s getting back at me for something.
What if I simply freak out and die?
On and on it goes.
The Lord has a check list of what to do when faced with anxious thoughts. He says to wrestle down the thoughts that are not in harmony with the knowledge of God.
Wrestling takes work! Wrestling uses more muscles in the body than any other sport. It is not just an automatic response. No sir! It’s intentional. It’s aggressive. It’s grueling.
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
2 Corinthians 10:5
Why Does Wrestling Matter?
In short, because you will receive consequences for not wrestling.
Considering yourself defeated and going with the flow of your anxious feelings is not innocent. It’s disobedience. It’s sin. I know that sounds harsh. But the Lord who made us, tells us not to do that.
“Do not be anxious about anything, 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 your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7
The wrestling of anxious thoughts is not a fast, once and done thing. For many of us, it is a daily struggle. Like a wrestling partner who believes wrestling practice is never over, creeps up, and takes you down in random places throughout your day. It is a continual fight to set your thoughts above and not on things that are on earth (Colossians 3:2). Learning to slow down, regain perspective, and respond by speaking truth to yourself is essential.
My Lord is sovereign and meticulously managing the details of my life
I am loved steadfastly by my Father and nothing touches me without His design
The Lord desires me to pass this test with His help and have proven character because of it
This test will pass
I have been delivered from the domain of darkness (Colossians 1:13)
All my sins – all of them – have been forgiven. The Lord is never “getting back at me” for something
As I am in the midst of this test, I need to remember how it feels so I can relate to others
I have an opportunity to display God’s grace before others
If it is from the Evil One, I am worthy of being attacked
God’s Word becomes more precious to me as I cling to its promises
Friend, as you read these words I want to pour courage over you. You can have victory. You can be conformed to Christ in the way you respond to hard things that come your way. Don’t be afraid!
Christ Our Wisdom Sovereign Grace 2024
The Wrap
I want to share a tool that has helped me over and over again. Get a hold of a journal or even just a piece of paper. Begin to articulate exactly what it is that is worrisome. Then begin to wrap that concern with thanksgiving. In other words, deliberately think thanks about your challenge.
Let me show you with the incident that happened to us with the lost luggage.
My thinkful wrap:
Our plane made it to the USA all the way from Johannesburg, SA
The Lord knew exactly where our four bags were even if we didn’t
I Corinthians 10:13 promised me that God had checked this test. He knew I could pass this test with His help
David and I were together and could share this burden and have people pray with us that it would arrive in time IF God willed it
Romans 8:28-29 tells me that all things in my life, even losing luggage, can work for good, for me being more conformed to Christ
Perhaps it could help get my eyes more on things above and not on things on earth
Jesus has promised to never leave me nor forsake me even in the middle of an airport
I may meet others who have gone through the same test and I can now relate better
End of the Story
Losing luggage is really not a big deal. It’s irritating, but they are just things. There are many, many other challenges that are much more difficult. And in fact our luggage was never lost. The airline was facing a weight limit on a trans-Atlantic flight so they set many bags aside for the next flight.
But this was a test to see if I would give into the temptation of anxious thoughts.
How are you responding to anxious thoughts? With every test comes temptations? Slow down your response, wrestle down the lies and imaginations of worst-case scenarios, list the things you can be thankful for, regain God’s perspective, and act with wisdom.
After thirty hours the luggage was delivered by the airline.
th(i)nkful 