What We Fallback On

Pressure builds. Stress swells. Life has plenty of challenges to offer. When the pressure is on we can fall into some patterns or habits as a way to cope. All of us have our fallback vices and it is so easy to go there.

This past weekend I had the privilege to teach at church on James 5:9-11 and it identified one of the quickest places we tend to fall when the pressure is on. We tend to turn on those closest to us. At the end of a stressful day, a day where we gave our best to our boss or coworkers, we can come home and give our worst to our spouse and children. When we feel the squeeze of finances falling short, we can become consumed with trying to fix, finagle and fantasize our way out of a budget crisis. I tend to over-react in the money realm. Certainly, there are things we must do on our part to be responsible. When the pressure builds, financial or otherwise, we must learn to respond and not react. We must learn to respond with trust in Christ to lead us through.

At one of these moments, I felt the stress mounting. My intellect was buzzing and my gut was churning. I went to Scripture and struggled to find a passage that helped. I know, you were expecting me to say I opened my Bible and found the perfect verse right off the bat and upon reading it, light from heaven filled the room along with the chorus of angels and everything was warm and fuzzy and I'm all better now.

No. I read several of the Psalms. I read parts of Matthew, John, Proverbs, and nothing seemed to fit or make sense. I went back to James, but my brain could not be quiet. My heartburn would not quit flaming. I finally laid my head down next to my Bible. It was open to James 5. I kept praying for wisdom. Praying for peace. Praying for clarity. I kept praying until I drifted off to sleep. By the way, don't feel bad when that happens. Every now and then, we need to crawl up in our Father's arms for a nap.

My light sleep was abruptly stopped when I heard the page of my Bible turn. I looked up and I was still the only one in the room. Now the ceiling fan was on and the draft probably turned the page. I just find it interesting how it had not even nudged a page before this moment. We must remember God can control or manipulate anything He wishes in any way He wishes. Regardless, the page was turned and there was the end of Hebrews. I read:

"Make sure your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, 'I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,' so that we confidently say, 'The LORD is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?' Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be carried away by varied and strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, through which those who were so occupied were not benefited." Hebrews 13:5-9 NASB

My preoccupation with the money needed some perspective. Christ is our Helper and will not forsake us. He has provided everything we have needed and I have no reason to doubt our future needs will not be met. We must do our part to be responsible and shave the budget where we need to. But when this letter was written, there were people participating in rituals and worshiping gods with food among other things. They worshiped idols. But there are so many Christians who have gone before us and endured so much worse circumstances than us and have come out blessed. Not materially blessed necessarily, but rewarded by God in their faith. This great cloud of witnesses spurs us on to endure and trust that Christ is our source of grace. Our hearts will not be strengthened by the pantry, the bottle, the pill or the internet. Our hearts and minds are strengthened by Christ's grace and truth that is unchanging.

On a hard day, we need to fallback on Christ, not our old habits and vices.