The Edge

Jen here. "You are in bear country" WHAT??? This sign might as well read "Where your every childhood nightmare comes true".
Wild animals have been in my nightmares since I was young. Wolves, cougars, dinosaurs (thanks, Jurassic Park), bears and the dark sum up most of my scariest dreams. I grew up in rural Idaho, so these things were a reality (except the dinos...).

Living in WA is a blast, but what if we run into a wild animal?

Just the other night Roy, Dale and I watched the movie "The Edge". I chose it (it was my fault!). It is about three city guys who crash in middle-of-nowhere Alaska and while they not only need to survive and wander their way back to civilization, they also have a "ravenous bear" stalking them. This huge, scary, Kodiak bear eats one of the guys alive and continues stalking the other two men because "once the bears got the taste of humans, that's all he wants". Yikes.

And the next day we went on a hike in the mountains....Praise be to God, there were no ravenous Kodiak bears stalking us...

That evening I was so afraid. I was nervous. I kept thinking about the bear in the movie and wondering if there was a bear outside (in the city?), maybe one looking at me right now! Ahhh!!!

Bad place to be. I needed Jesus. I ran to God's Word, searched for the word "fear" and wrote down every verse that applied. By "applied" I don't mean every verse where God told people not to fear the Kodiak bears... Verses where God comforted His people and protected and defended them. Verses about trusting in God and not fearing those who can kill the body. Verses about fearing God, and about God as our Refuge and Shield.

Reading God's Word brought me back to Earth, reminding me of my AWESOME God who is head over all creation, who made all things, who shut the mouths of the lions to save Daniel and who made the donkey speak to Balaam. God is so much bigger than I make him out to be. He loves you, and me intimately. He is able to calm all my fears and defend me. He works all things for my good and His glory. What peace to rest in Jesus. Amen!

Enjoy a few of the verses:

Deuteronomy 31:8 "It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed."

Psalm 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 33:18-21 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.

Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Proverbs 19:23 The fear of the LORD leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

Lamentations 3:57 You came near when I called on you; you said, 'Do not fear!'

2 Timothy 1:7 For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

Matthew 10:29-31 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? [fn] And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

Silly Israelites

Sunday, a day of rest. I like Sundays. We sleep in, spend time with Jesus, go to church and usually go out to eat with people. Fun.

IECC (the church we attend) is going through a 5-week series on the 5 Pillars of IECC. Let's see if I can name them all: worship, community, growth, service and outreach. Today's sermon was on outreach. Pastor Brett focused on us going "outside the camp", and one of the Bible passages we read caught my heart.

Numbers 13:31-14:4-"Then the [men who were sent to spy out the Promised Land and bring back info] said, 'We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.' So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, 'The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim...and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.'

"Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, 'Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?' And they said to one another, 'Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.' "

Wow. This is a classic Israel moment. I separated it into two physical paragraphs for a reason. Upon reading it, I was reminded of how amazing and powerful God is. He gives a child to a couple who is barren...He heals people...He delivered Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego from the midst of the burning fiery furnace. He is AWESOME. And even to the Israelites...He has been so good to them. He delivered them out of Egypt, gave them manna to eat every morning and quail to eat in the desert. He caused water to pour from a rock and made a bitter stream...not bitter. He protected them when Pharaoh changed his mind and tried to chase them down with his chariots. Come on! Why don't the Israelites remember the awesome things God has done? Why don't they realize how amazing God is?

Rather than freak out and grumble, why didn't they say something like this? "Wow, God will surely deliver this land to us in a mighty way. He promised it to us and He is faithful to his promises. I can't wait to see how he kills off the giants or runs them out...He'll do something because He said He'll give us this land. He can do anything! Just think of the mighty things He's done for us already! We are His chosen people, and He loves us. This will be fun to watch."

But, no, the old Israelites respond with no faith, no trust, no delight in God, no knowledge of who God is (faithful, loving true) or what He's done for them already (mighty, powerful), choosing death instead of life. Don't they get it yet? God is doing all the work! He made them prosper and multiply in Egypt, He raised up Moses, He turned Pharaoh's heart to let the people go, He rescued them from Pharaoh and parted the Red Sea so they could walk through on dry ground, He led them through the wilderness by a pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night, He protected them from wild animals, He walked them to the edge of the Promised Land and HE will be the One who delivers the land into their hands. Not them. They are but weak and frail humans. They can't do it! God is the One. Not me. Oh sure, I flew on the airplane to Hong Kong, I am living in an apartment, assisting Chess classes, meeting a few people, but God is accomplishing it all...and preparing for His purposes. Not me. Silly Jenny, learn from the Israelites:trust in God, for He is the Everlasting God, Creator of the ends of the earth. Amen.