Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

On account of this, I bend my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you according to the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith (you having been firmly rooted and established in love), in order that you may be strong enough to grasp together with all the saints what is the breadth, and length, and height, and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, in order that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 3:14-19

The Military Family Life Counselor (MFLC) is a VITAL part of military reunion & reintegration after a soldier’s deployment. There is also a Family Readiness Officer (FRO). When you are apart from each other, you have different experiences. That’s a no-brainer. But with a military spouse, it is a set of EXTREME differences. There is an adjustment period and it is vital to have support during the process. You essentially have to learn to date your spouse again. Get to know each other again. There are finances and the different ways you handle them while apart vs together. There are the children – some who may have been born while the spouse was deployed – who also need to get to know the solider parent all over again. There is the reintegration into a marriage unit/family again. That is stressful. Arguing, awkwardness, not being on the same page anymore, and frustration. It takes WEEKS of working together to deal with these things. Communication is the BIGGEST hurdle. Decisions have been made while apart, and the reasons behind them are not always communicated (naturally). There is a need to learn to communicate. Catch up in all the best ways, but also in the hard ways. Learning new routines, finding out where everything is kept now after a re-organization, and making sure everyone has their own space so there is a place to go when things get to be too much. It is NOT an easy thing, but it IS a surmountable thing. Ruach HaKodesh is OUR Family Life Counsellor. Because let’s face it, we WANDER.

“What man of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the grassland and go after the one that was lost until he finds it?” (Luke 15:4). “For you were going astray like sheep, but you have turned back now to the shepherd and guardian of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25). We wander. We do it ourselves. We refuse to submit. We are selfish. We are prideful. We make ourselves Elohim and make the decisions for our lives without consulting Adonai. We covet things and then go after them. We STRAY. What we do is give place to broken thinking. We continue the patterns of thought and behaviour – possibly with slight derivations – that we had and participated in when we were NOT part of Adonai’s family. When we do that, we strengthen the hold of our feelings and desires on us. Not positive Adonai-centred ones, but broken ones, consuming ones, and carnal (of this world) ones. We can choose to come back. We can choose to submit to His yoke (Matthew 11:28-30). But it takes INTENT. It takes EFFORT. It takes WORK. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, so that he will forgive us our sins and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Confession is REPENTANCE which is a complete reversal of thought, word, and action. A correcting of course.

Who better to steer us through this process of repentance and renewing our thinking to make it in accord with Adonai’s thinking – instead of our own broken patterns, the patterns of the world, or the patterns of the devil’s kingdom – than THE counsellor Himself? “For a child has been born for us; a son has been given to us. And the dominion will be on his shoulder, and his name is called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). “Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in all affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). We get counselling from THE counsellor, enabling us to have comfort in our afflictions (whether they’re coming from the world, the devil, or the consequences of our own straying actions). When we have comfort, we can comfort others. We can spread the Blessing. We are in that position once we have been helped into it by repenting on purpose. Choosing to humbly submit to Him and His will. Submitting to what we find in the Word and choosing to align ourselves with it. It is not always an EASY process, but it is a SIMPLE process. Listen, learn, obey. But like with MANY things, we need help to walk it out.

When we have communication issues, when we feel the stress of life in this world, when the consequences of words and actions catch up with us, when we’re attacked because we’re seeking to get closer to Adonai or spread the news of what He’s done for us, or when our flesh gets whiney and demandy; we NEED a counsellor. We need someone to talk strategy and methodology with. Someone who can brainstorm with us, provide a framework for success, and a safe space to talk it all through. Ruach HaKodesh was GIVEN to us for just such a purpose (John 14:26-28). We under use Him. We don’t avail ourselves of the Adonai-given opportunity that He is. Why is there always so much talk of what does Adonai want? What is His will? What should we do? We have an answer machine living inside of us. Sometimes the answer is clear and to the point. Sometimes the answer is study in the Word. Sometimes the answer is praying and fasting until we have made ourselves ready to hear the next step – without immediately balking at it. Ruach HaKodesh can steer us through these waters, but we NEED to listen to Him.

Praise is something that helps us get in touch with Adonai. Praise aligns our spirits with His Spirit so that we are ready to listen. Ready to HEAR what He is actually saying. Ready to align ourselves with His Word, His will, and His Way of doing things. Praising Adonai gets us to where we are ready to be counselled. Ready to adjust our thinking (Romans 12:2). Ready to change our actions. Ready to curtail and adjust our words. Praising Adonai engages us with Ruach HaKodesh. It is yet one MORE reason to ALWAYS praise Adonai. Consistently. Throughout ALL our days. We need to be ready all the time for whenever we need another counselling session.

Daily Affirmation of the Goodness of Elohim: Psalm 123:2

“Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to Yahweh our God, until he is gracious to us.” Adonai accomplished this for us in and through Jesus. He WAS and He IS gracious to us. SO gracious. We no longer need to pray for it. We no longer need to seek it or yearn for it. Jesus IS our Grace. He IS our comfort. He IS our Lord (master). He IS our Elohim. He IS all that we need and all that we could want. He is SO GOOD TO US! What a GOOD God!

Your Daily Confession of Elohim’s Goodness:

I taste and see that Yahweh is good; I am blessed because I take refuge in Him.

Psalm 34:8