Fear has been a life-long chain, shackled around me…bringing worry and what-ifs into even the silliest of situations.

And if I am being honest, my fear often causes me to question my faith. I mean, if I trusted God wouldn’t I not be afraid? What if my fear is a reflection of my lack of faith?

If Dominic is traveling and doesn’t call when I expect him to I am certain that he must be in a ditch somewhere. It is never just as simple as he needed to stop for gas and got a phone call or was trying to grab a quick bite to eat…no he is dead in a ditch. And his car is probably on fire because that happens all the time right?

It is crazy even typing that out…but if I let them get the best of me, my thoughts can run wild.

Open my eyes Lord that I might see….

Have you ever prayed that?

In a circumstance that feels out of your control or too big to handle, have you ever prayed that God would open your eyes so that you may see the situation more clearly?

In the chapter about our identity, Priscilla shares a story from 2 Kings 6: 8-17.  In these verses we find Elisha, a servant of God and a man who is in constant communication (prayer) with God. Because of this, God gives him some advance warnings about what is going to happen next with this king of Aram. Elisha had the king of Israel’s ear and would then warn him of what was to come. Pretty cool huh?!

So apparently this makes the king of Aram pretty upset and when he discovers that Elisha is behind these leaks of information, he sends out this whole army that surrounds the city where Elisha is. Can we say worst case scenario?!

Now if it had been me, I would have been spinning like crazy with all the coulda/woulda/shoulda’s. But not Elisha. He had been in constant communication with God. And I have to believe that he trusted that God’s plan for him was good.  Elisha’s servant wakes up and sees the city surrounded and freaks out and guess what Elisha does?

He prays that God would open the servant’s eyes so that he might see.

And what does he see? As he looks out across the mountainside the servant sees it filled with horses and chariots of fire. A heavenly army protecting God’s faithful servant Elisha.

Can you imagine what that would have felt like?!

Reading this chapter caused me to pause and ask myself what areas in my life do I need to ask God to open my eyes so that I can see more clearly? Maybe it is a struggle with a wayward child, or a difficult marriage, a job decision or a health matter. Maybe if we asked God to open our eyes we would not only see the situation more clearly, but we would be reminded that we are not alone in the battle. 

The enemy wants us to be stuck in the worst case scenario thoughts. He wants us to feel defeated and alone. But through prayer we can ask God to reveal the truth of our situation. That we would see how God is fighting for us, and be reminded that we are not entering the battlefield alone.

Romans 8: 15-17 says this “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”

We are accepted heirs of God. Our identity is found in Him and because of Him we can walk in freedom. If you are burdened by fears today, like I so often have been, would you pray that God would open your eyes to the truth?

Lord, we come today and place our fears at Your feet. We ask Lord that You would open our eyes to Your truth. Remembering that You formed us, and have already seen our entire life set before you. We trust in the plans that You have for us Lord. We are broken but we are trusting You to take those broken, fear-filled pieces and make us whole for Your glory. Thank you Lord that we don’t have to journey alone. In Jesus Name, Amen.