I have a family member who has claustrophobia. For those of you who may not know, claustrophobia is a fear of being enclosed in a small space or room and having no escape. He has a pretty strong case of it and has mentioned it several times over the years. He has quite a few funny stories to tell about it, so he doesn’t really let it get to him too much. Instead, as much as he can, he has fun with it.
He has a cat named Bud. Bud goes everywhere he goes. Bud, being a cat, cannot help with chores but so much, but he hangs out with him. Occasionally, something comes up on the to-do list that involves going under the house. Now, if there ever was a place that could trigger a claustrophobic reaction every time, the space underneath a house is it. As much as he doesn’t like to do it, it must be done. Therefore, he and Bud set out together to tackle whatever needs to be done under the house. Surprisingly, the anxiety does not get out of control. Having Bud there…well, it helps somehow. Now, just to reiterate, Bud is a cat. He is a faithful companion, but there is not much he could do if the house started collapsing or some other major problem came up. In other words, Bud probably will not change the circumstances if something were to go wrong. Perhaps Bud could run for help, and he probably would, but beyond that…what power does this beloved pet have to help calm his caretaker’s fear?
Being strong and courageous is not something we can do alone.
In Joshua 1:1-9, God encourages Joshua to “be strong and courageous” numerous times. I would tell you how many, but I really do not feel like counting right now. Needless to say, it is several…enough to get the point across. Instead, I want to point out the last verse: “Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9, ESV).
After telling Joshua multiple times how important it was for him to be strong and courageous, God sums it up with what would fuel that strength and courage. God would be there with Joshua. Every day. Every hour. Every minute. God would be right there beside him no matter what the circumstances. Even if God’s plan was not to change the circumstances, He would still be with Joshua, providing him with all that he needed.
God was not asking Joshua to muster up strength and courage on his own. God was telling Joshua that He would provide the strength and courage abundantly. God would do this through the promise that Joshua would never be alone. God would be there wherever Joshua would go. Joshua needed only to trust Him every step of the way.
God does not want us to rely on ourselves…ever.
Just like with Joshua, God does not ask us to manifest strength and courage through self-effort either. Instead, our Father promises to provide us with what we need to face our fears. One of the foundational truths about God that makes it possible for us to have security in the presence of scary things is this: we are never alone. Having someone with you when you face a fear makes a huge difference. The family member I mentioned earlier knows this from experience. While Bud does not have the power to change circumstances, he is able to provide his friend with strength and courage by choosing to be right there beside him in the midst of scary situations. This man knows he is not alone, and that does something in him that leads to going under the house and doing the work that needs to be done. While God’s love, strength, and courage is being supplied through one of his feline creations with my family member, it is often supplied to us through each other. We need only to trust Him and then allow others He sends our way to love us and be there for us.
Trusting leads to living it, and living it leads to sharing it.
As we learn to trust God when it comes to His promise that He will be with us always, we begin to experience it in our everyday lives. As we experience the reality of God’s presence, in the big and small things, we can begin to love others by sharing it with them too. Every one of us has felt alone. Despite the truth that God has shared, our circumstances, feelings, and past experiences tell us something different. We do not have to fear the fact that we do not know what to do for someone when they are scared and hurting. We cannot and do not have to try to fix it for them. Instead, we may step into their lives and simply “be there” with them…similar to how Bud hangs out with his friend in the dark space under the house.