I Smell Smoke

I was talking on the phone with a friend when she suddenly said, "I think I need a Xanax!  I'm having trouble breathing and I'm feeling anxious!  My heart is racing!"  She was fully engaged in this anxiety attack, and as she continued to talk she walked over to her open balcony door and said, "Oh no!  There's a fire near me!  The sky is dark and ashes are swirling around on my balcony.  Oh my God!"  I said, "Close the door!  That's why you couldn't breathe."  As she closed the door, in pure sarcasm, I said, "I can see how you could get Xanax and oxygen confused.  They're so similar.  Happens all the time."  We both bursted into laughter!  Feeling much better now that the door was shut, she continued our conversation in a calm fashion.  Now our running joke in certain situations is "Do you need a Xanax or oxygen?"  LOL!  

This story sounds pretty funny, but it made me think of how many times we "open the door" allowing the wrong things to come into our lives and before we know it, unable to make a sound decision, we're reaching for the wrong thing to soothe us.  We become desperate to fill a lonely hole in our hearts, so we reach for the wrong person.  We become desperate to be successful, so we choose the wrong career path.  We become desperate to portray a certain image, so we make unwise financial decisions.  We smell the smoke, but are too disoriented to know Who or what to reach for. 

When I was younger, my mother would always tell me to read Psalms 91 when I was afraid for any reason.  It always seemed to comfort me.  Every verse spoke to my fears, my worries and my uncertainties, but one verse sticks out to me the most - verse 14a, "Because he loves me," says the Lord, "I will rescue him."  And boy oh boy have I been rescued from some smokey places!  Whew!

I have come to know that sometimes we simply need to "close the door".  While other times, we just need to know Who to reach for to calm out anxious hearts.  Take it from me, it makes all the difference in the world to reach for the right One!  Let Him rescue you today.

Love Always,

Shy

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