SPIRIT


Sometimes we concentrate so much on our physical health, we may forget about our emotional and spiritual health. While our physical bodies may be weak, our spirits can be strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9+10 says, "But [God] said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

FEAR

Being shy, one of the things I deal with most is fear. Getting out of my comfort-zone is something that I don't do very often or very well, and I found myself becoming somewhat of a hermit over the seven or eight years since I was diagnosed with food allergies. I found people my age, in general, don't know how to react to someone their age with such a dissimilar life, and I found it was much more comfortable for me, personally, to become my own best friend. However, when the New Year came in 2001, I made my first ever resolution that I intended to keep. That resolution was that I would continue to get out of my comfort-zone over the coming year. And boy, have I! I must say it hasn't always worked out, and I still deal with an awful lot of fear. But one thing I was able to do through getting out of my comfort-zone was to make a good Christian friend.
When I was going through a difficult time in my life this past year, due to social difficulties (again, I have a hard time relating to people my age), I went through a time of intense fear and self-doubt. It was then that I was led to the following verse: "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9). I dismissed the verse, but the very next day a friend e-mailed it to me and said she felt led that I was supposed to read it and take it to heart. What a powerful verse, isn't it? I find I still fail miserably in turning over all my fears and doubts to God. Instead, I hang on to them and think I can handle them myself. But the truth is, I can't. When I turn over my fears and doubts to Him, that's when I realize He's there with me, every step of the way.
"He replied, 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you'" (Luke 10:18).

DEPRESSION

"Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" (Psalms 139:16).
"O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways" (Psalm 139:1-3).
"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows" (Matthew 10:29-31).
"...In all things God works for the good of those who love him..." (Romans 8:28).
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