September 12

Psalm 56
I love this psalm. It is about paranoia in all its myriad forms.
I don't usually suffer from paranoia but I have several very close friends that do and when they are 'on', it is quite frightening to them and others who love them.
Nothing will comfort them. And the more that they talk, the more 'real' the threat is.

This psalm provides David's answer to those emotions and if you suffer from this or are close to someone who does -- mark vs. 3-4 and 10-13 with a bright yellow highlighter.
When David was afraid, he sang praise songs. I know that is hard to do. When he felt besieged by real or imaginary demons, he wrote praise poems, songs and prayers.
The basic premise is that God took care of your enemies before, He will take care of them again.
Do you believe that?
Maybe in the moment of panic, that is hard to believe. When the child is deathly ill, everyone is talking about you at work, the bills are high, nothing seems to be going right.
But right there, stop. Breathe deeply and recite my personal favorite piece of scripture (and since it is my birthday, I get to skip ahead)

Isaiah 43:1-3a
But now, this is what the Lord says--
He who created you, O Jacob,
He who formed you, O Israel;
Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through waters, I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will no overwhelm you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
From I am The Lord, your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

One of the many silly things I have in my head is the body's reaction to stress. Any stress.
As your adrenaline kicks in, you start breathing more shallowly. The lower oxygen content in your blood is better for flight but what it awful for is JUDGMENT.
And modern day stress requires JUDGMENT.

so the next time you or your loved ones start down the paranoia track, Stop. Breathe deeply and try to imagine -- even if it is hard -- that God WILL take care of you. Praise him for all the good stuff in the past and what is good right now. Breathe. And then, attack the problem.

Grace and peace to each of you.