Lisa notes

Afraid

DAY 2, OCTOBER 2

If you scratch deep enough, you’ll find a fear.

Everybody is afraid of something.

I’m afraid of heights.

And that includes bridges. (Did you know it’s called gephyrophobia?)

Last week Jeff and I toured through our home state of Alabama. In Selma, we wanted to walk across the infamous Edmund Pettus Bridge, the site of the horrific beatings on Bloody Sunday, March 21, 1965.

On that day 53 years ago, the marchers feared for their very lives.

On my day in 2018, I only feared falling off.

Facing my fear was much easier than what they faced.

What Are You Afraid Of?

As we look at our stories, we inevitably will uncover fears.

Sometimes we run to God when we’re scared. Sometimes we run away from God because we’re afraid of him.

Think about your reaction to things that make you afraid.

Here are our three questions of the day:

(1) Are you afraid of the dark?

(2) What is one fear you wish God would take away?

(3) What is a recent scare you’ve had, big or small?

* * *

What are your answers? Please share in the comments.

My answers:

(1) I’m afraid of SOUNDS I hear in the dark.

(2) Among other fears, I’d like God to remove my fear of the unknown. But instead, he just keeps riding along with me head-on into the unknown.

(3) We had a mouse in the house a few weeks ago. I know it’s small and I’m big (comparatively), but the thought of it scurrying around my kitchen really bothered me.

More here

• Don’t Be Afraid to Be Afraid
  God knows we have dangerous tasks to do. Even if we’re afraid. Can he have courage for us?
• Are We Scared of the Wrong Things?
  Instead of being scared for our safety, what if we took Jesus at his word and refused to be intimidated…welcoming whatever comes because God is with us?
• Everybody Is Scared of Something
  If even a Navy SEAL can have fear, we can, too. Everybody is scared of something. But fear won’t win if we’ll go forward anyway.
• When Desire Is Greater Than Fear
  Behind many of our fears is the lack of control. But the way to overcome fear isn’t to have more control; it’s to replace it with something stronger.

 

Get the whole Handmade series here.

Every life is a story.

• Extraordinary
• One of a kind
• Handmade by God

Where has God been in your story?

31 Day Series

For the next 31 days, let’s look at our individual stories, and help each other find God in those stories.

I’ll post three short questions a day. Answer below in the comments, or on my daily Instagram post, or just in your head. As few or as many days as you want. No rules.

I’ll be adapting questions from the one word prompts at Five Minute Friday.

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Today’s post also includes Day 1 . . . Story.

1 – Story
Where has God been in your story? Answer 3 questions for 31 days to find God in your handmade story.

2 – What Scares You?
What are you afraid of? Which fear do you wish God would take away?

3 – Who Do You Believe?
What do you believe in? Who do you believe?

4 – Why, Why, Why
We never know as much as we think we do. So keep asking why, why, why.

5 – Release
What do you need to let go of? Sometimes we have to let go of one thing before we can receive another.

6 – Belong
Where do you go to church? Do you belong there?

7 – This Is Why It’s Safe to Hope
Sometimes we’re afraid to get our hopes up. But it’s safe to. Because God is already in our tomorrows.

8 – Step Out of Your Comfort Zone
Comfort zones feel safe. But not much growth happens there. What comfort zone is God calling you out of?

9 – Breathe in the Inspiration
When days are dark, what or who inspires you to keep going? What is God inspiring you to do in this season?

10 – How Do You Worship?
Often we know what and why we do what we do. But how to do it? That can vary. How do you worship?

11 – Oil the Hinges
Doors are made to both open and close. Are your hinges oiled?

12 – Which Side Are You On?
Through just one question, we classify people as right or left. What if we asked a different question instead, to heal instead of divide?

13 – Call or Text?
Text or call? How do you decide what mode of communication to use in each situation?

14 – When You’re Afraid to Ask
Why don’t you ask God for more? You don’t have to know how or when or who he’ll use to answer.

15 – When Will You Get Your Grace?
When will you receive a fresh supply of grace? Always today.

16 – Pray to Do More Than Pray
We often pray for people. But what if God wants to use us as an answer? We pray we’ll do more than pray.

17 – Worship in the Pause
Just sit still in the pause. It may birth the most radical worship you can offer.

18 – Call Off the Search
We look and look. But what if we already have it? Call off the search.

19 – When Did You Convert
When we turn around and head a different direction, we’ve experienced conversion. God continues to bring us times of conversion. These are no less real than our initial conversions.

20 – Do You Like an Audience
Some people crave an audience. Others of us avoid the limelight. Which are you?

21 – Just Start
Sometimes we fail to start because we can’t imagine finishing. But start anyway. Take one step today.

22 – Take the Shortcut?
Sometimes shortcuts give us the help we need. But other times? They rob us of time with God.

23 – Uncommon Things at Church
This homeless man was going to prove it wasn’t just another day at church. Uncommon things happen when we wake up.

24 – You Already Know Enough
Sometimes we think we have to know everything before we can do something. But as believers, it’s more about who we belong to than how much we know.

25 – How Does He Capture You
Is it safe to put all your eggs in one basket, if the Lord is holding the basket?

26 – When It’s Not Your First Time
There is a first time for everything. While we can never repeat a first ourselves, we can enjoy a first with someone else.

27 – See the Whole Picture
It helps to see the whole picture. I don’t like mopping the floor. But when I think of my grandbaby crawling on it, it’s much easier to do.

28 – Begin with Worship
How would you describe worship? It’s a perfect way to start a day, a week, a life.

29 – Books that Bring Us Together
Books bring us together with people we would never meet otherwise. Here are four books I recommend from what I finished this month.

30 – Hear a Different Voice
When we speak different languages, we sometimes tune out the other voice–and the other person–altogether. But we miss out when we ignore each other.

31 – Hurricane Michael Aftermath – Get Close
Sometimes you have to get close. We’re getting up close and personal with Hurricane Michael this week. Panama City is now more than a vacation spot to us.

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Story

Day 1, October 1

Once upon a time. . .

Every story has a beginning.

(1) Where were you born?

(2) Are your parents still alive?

(3) How far away do you live now from where you were born?

* * *

I’d love to hear your answers in the comments.

My answers: 

(1) I was born in Pontotoc, Mississippi.

(2) Both my parents died in 2010, seven months apart. My dad died of lung cancer on Valentine’s Day, and my mother died from Alzheimer’s that September. I still miss them both.

(3) I live 170 miles from where I was born, but only 7 miles from where I grew up in Alabama.

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Previous 31 Day Series

• October 2016—26 Surprising Ways to Encounter God
• October 2015—Tools to Memorize a Bible Chapter
• October 2014—31 Quotes of Grace ( + a free pdf)
• October 2013—31 Days of Book Quotes
• October 2012—Grace (Do you notice a theme? I never tire of grace.)