Dear Christian sufferer,
I’m glad you stumbled onto this blog. Life is no doubt hard right now – we are used to going through difficult times, but right now it might seem like a time unlike any other… a time of uncertainty and instability.
There are Bible verses I want to encourage you and I with. It’s found in Matthew 14, and it’s the account of Peter walking on the water:
28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
Peter had to face his fears and get out of the boat, out of what was comfortable. So often with OCD, we don’t want to face our fears. It is the last thing we want to do. We have built what we have deemed a comfortable life around us. However, how can we step into all that God has for us when we never challenge the lies? Fear is a liar – the enemy is a liar. However, at the time, the lies feel so real. We never think of challenging them because we think they are fact when they are not.
It can be said that 91% of your fears won’t come true. I think that is fairly good odds if you ask me! If I told you there was a 91% chance that you would win the lottery, you would probably get pretty excited, wouldn’t you? :)
That’s the thing! We have reason to be excited because so many of the fears we have aren’t going to come true. Let’s just say they do, and we feel ourselves sinking like Peter did, what should we do? All we have to do is call out to God and say, “Lord, save me!” like Peter did.
It says immediately Jesus reached out His hand to Peter. Jesus is with us. He would never leave us. Sometimes in our struggles we think we are all alone when in reality we are not. Jesus is ready to take us by the hand for the glory of God.
Here’s the cool part of what happened after this scene of Peter dramatically walking on water and Jesus coming to his rescue:
32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Peter’s fear of the wind was really unnecessary. The wind eventually died down and all was well. The amazing thing that happened after this is that those in the boat then worshipped Jesus saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.” In the midst of Peter’s weakness, Christ’s power shone bright.
Let that encourage you where you are right now in life. Whether you are suffering from OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) or anxiety, you are safe in Jesus. Things might look rocky from your perspective right now, but you can call out to Jesus. He is nearer than you think. Also, don’t lose faith and face your fears.