For God hath not given us
the spirit of fear; but of power,
and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)
On June 29th I'll begin a new phase of my journey. That afternoon, I'll meet with a Doctor to begin weaning off my current pain medications so that I can go through some new treatments this Summer. When my Pain Management Doctor and I made the decision to try this treatment, I knew I wanted to wait until after my remodel. We both agreed that I'd need all my pain medications during that time.
One thing I hadn't counted on was, how sly Satan's is. Before my remodel, I was trying to give away my old sofabed. I wanted to take pictures of it, and thought I'd open it. I'd done that many times before and had no problem. It has an easy to open feature. But as I opened it, I twisted my back....OUCH!
The pain was extreme. Immediately, Satan took advantage of that and put this thought in my head, "If your strong medication isn't powerful enough NOW to help lower your pain, how will you make it on weaker medications?" I should have immediately ignored that thought....but I didn't. I continued thinking on it. The more I thought on it, the more fear took hold.
The pain was extreme. Immediately, Satan took advantage of that and put this thought in my head, "If your strong medication isn't powerful enough NOW to help lower your pain, how will you make it on weaker medications?" I should have immediately ignored that thought....but I didn't. I continued thinking on it. The more I thought on it, the more fear took hold.
Fear is a powerful thing.
It can paralyze a person
from doing something great.
It ignores all other facts and
creates its own reality.
I tried all the usual 'tricks' to settle the pain, but it seemed to get stronger... another result of fear. The more I focused on the pain and the fear of being in more pain (due to weaker meds), the stronger the pain became.
Things continued to get worse until I DEMANDED my mind to focus on 2 Timothy 1:7, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
As I focused on God
and HIS POWER,
and HIS POWER,
I began to get a new perspective
on my pain and
the upcoming procedures.
the upcoming procedures.
Yes, my pain level is still high, and may go higher as I wean off the medications. HOWEVER, it's NOTHING I have to fear. The past 10 years, God has been teaching me how to handle pain. He has provided unique techniques which help my body relax. Even if the pain does increase, it's only temporary.
And this is just PART of the journey. The goal in weaning off the medications and doing the new treatment is to lower my pain—long term. And if it doesn't work, my Doctors and I do know which combination of medication and treatments do help lower the pain.
So, as I look ahead to the start of the next phase, I have a choice to make. I can approach this new phase of my journey with FEAR, or I can choose to focus on God and HIS POWER. If I choose fear, the journey will be more difficult and I'll miss blessings God has in store for me. If I choose God and His Power, the road will be tough, but filled with blessings. It's my choice.
Fear is powerful. Yet, God is more powerful. As I begin the new treatments, I know that Satan will be close by ready to take advantage of any opportunity he sees. When my pain level increases, it will be easy to focus on the pain and fear. However, God gives me the POWER, LOVE and a SOUND MIND, all I have to do is choose it.
The goal is to keep my focus
on the positive power of God.
