Overflowing with gratitude

        So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness." (Col.2:6-7)
        "...and overflowing with gratitude."  A simple thought for Thanksgiving today, but does "overflowing with gratitude" characterize my life?  How about yours?  Is gratitude our default attitude in life...or is it cynicism...complaining...chronic discontentment...caustic entitlement? 
          I can tell you, when I start to feel entitled, my gratitude disappears and along with it, any semblance of joy.  Or when I start focusing on whatever it is that I want but lack, well then, here comes grumbling, discontentment, and discouragement.
         Yet all around me, the world dances with God's abounding goodness, His extravagant love,  His staggering abundance, His astounding grace.
         Just the other day, I gazed out the window and saw a sight worthy of the National Gallery of Art--

         Right outside our front door!  Look at those brilliant colors, those varied leaves dancing in the breeze...all absolutely free. Available night and day to be seen and appreciated and savored!  Yet day after day, I'd zoom past in my car with nary a glance.  But I should have been filled with awe and awash with gratitude that an Almighty Lord grew those trees, colored those leaves, gave me eyes to see them, ears to hear their rustling, and a heart to know and love their glorious Creator! 
         "It is always possible to be thankful for that is given rather than to complain about what is not given. One of the other becomes a habit of life...Accept, positively and actively, what is given to you. Let thanksgiving be the habit of your life." (Elisabeth Elliott)
         "Overflowing with thankfulness" occurs when we "let thanksgiving be the habit" of our lives. And habit means we consciously choose to cultivate it day after day after day. 
          Thank You Lord for this day...for this breath...for my family near and far...for that mug of hot tea this morning...for the gigantic stick Bingley carried on our walk today... for a text from a dear friend...for being able to text another dear friend who is halfway across the world...for prayer...for autumn and pilgrims and Thanksgiving and pumpkins...for a warm bed at night...for chocolate cake...for my parents in heaven...for the cardinal at our bird feeder...for a new grandbaby...for Thanksgiving and Christmas hymns and songs... 
            Ann Voskamp says, "Joy is a function of gratitude, and gratitude is a function of perspective."  We don't so much as need a change in our circumstances as we need a change in our perspective--and that means looking for, noticing, and being grateful for the blessings God showers all around us and over us. Maybe even just outside our front door! 
            Today, and everyday, let's choose gratitude.  Because we have a great God who is a relentless Giver of all good gifts. And that Almighty Lord and Creator knows us each by name. Amazing.  If that doesn't make you grateful, I don't know what will!
            Father, give us eyes to see, hearts to savor, and mouths to thank You.  Make us relentlessly grateful. Might we be people who overflow with gratitude. To God be the glory.

We become what we behold

        William Blake first said it: "We become what we behold."
        Here's how Paul expressed it in 2 Cor.3:18, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."
        So what are you beholding? 
        I've been asking myself this question.  In our distracted, busy, technology-obsessed world, what am I beholding on a daily, consistent basis?  Upon what is my gaze directed?  Yeah, sure we all tend to glance at all kinds of things, but the question boils down to our steady gaze as opposed to our passing glances. What's the focus on our meditations?  When our minds wander, where do they tend to settle?
       Do we tend to default to fretting...worrying...controlling...complaining...envying...striving?  Then guess what?  We're clearly not daily, consistently beholding the beauty, the grace, the forgiveness, the power, the creativity, the joy, the wisdom, the love, the glory of our Savior.  Because we become what we become, and He is not, not, not the Author, Sustainer, or Reflector of fear, anxiety, manipulation, jealousy, discontentment. 
       But we have the choice. Praise God, we have been given us the gift of choosing where we will focus our gaze. We can choose what and who we behold on a consistent basis.
       Thank You, Lord, for giving us minds and hearts that can choose to behold and dwell upon your perfect Word, your astounding creation, and You yourself...You who are perfect, infinite, eternal, beautiful, gracious, winsome, almighty, compassionate, omniscient, faithful, forgiving, omnipotent, loving and on and on.
        What we behold will, quite literally, change the course of our lives--both our ultimate course but also our daily, life-in-the-trenches course.  One is a path of grumbling and discouragement. The other a path of of gratitude and joy. One is a path of endless and self-focused striving. The other a path of daily renewal in You and Your Word.
        Ruth Chou Simons says, "We've been given so much to look at, but we are missing the art of beholding. We are so captivated by our technology and all that it puts before our eyes that we overlook the ways that God displays His glory through creation, relationships, and our ordinary circumstances in the day to day. We look for dramatic ways to experience God, but His presence and transforming work in our lives happen minute by minute." 
       But to experience true, beautiful, life-giving, joy-infusing transformation, we must look daily, intently, consistently at who Jesus is.  We see Him most clearly in His Word.  But we also see Him reflected in the beauty of His creation, in His people, and yes, even in our daily circumstances when we open wide our eyes of faith.
        Lift your gaze from your cell phone and instead gaze at the Savior.  Instead of worrying, start worshipping.  Rather than fretting over your lack of time to get everything done, choose to be fueled and fed by the Ancient of Days who has no beginning and no end and who never, ever runs out of anything.  Stop lamenting what you lack and instead start rejoicing at all--gloriously all--you possess in Him, through Him, and from Him.  He is enough...and He's given us so astoundingly, extravagantly, undeservedly much!
        When we choose to behold Jesus on a daily basis, we move from a scarcity mentality to an abundance mentality.  From despair to hope.  From ugly selfishness to beautiful self-forgetfulness.  From restlessness to rest. And from grumbling and discontentment to gratitude and contentment. 
        So today, who or what will you behold?  Where will you fix your gaze?  Keep returning that glance again and again to gaze at the Savior! 
      Oh might we daily, moment by moment, choose Jesus. 
       To God be the glory.

Thankfulness in the small

         "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." (Col.3:17)
        That little phrase keeps floating around in my brain--"whatever you do."  Whatever you do--whether running errands, cleaning the bathroom, walking your dog, changing your child's diaper, caring for that aging loved one, folding the laundry, returning that phone call, raking the leaves--whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God..." 
        What unwelcome tasks, what odious chores, what repetitive, mundane, or annoying jobs are we excluding from God's "everything?"  Are we doing our every deed and speaking our every word to the glory of the Lord Jesus?  And are we choosing to do and to speak continually with thanks? 
        How about when the fellow in front of you at the stoplight pauses too long when it turns green (because, duh, he's looking at his phone)...so you miss the light...and now you're late?  Are you still choosing thankfulness that you have a car, that you can drive, that Christ is with you in that car, that you have places to go, that you are surrounded by brilliant scarlet-colored trees? 
        How about when the answer to your prayer seems to be "no" or at least "not yet"--do you thank the Lord that He hears and that His wisdom is infinitely greater than yours? 
        How about when you're just dog-gone tired, and you still have to get up and go through the whole, daily drill yet again--wake up the children, get them dressed, fed, ready for school and on and on--is thankfulness ruling in your heart or is there a spirit of complaining and discouragement taking root?
        I don't know about you, but I don't see any exception clauses in those words from God's Word.  Do and speak everything in the name of Jesus.  Give thanks to God in everything through Jesus.  Thankful in the big and the small. Thankful in the hard and the easy.  Thankful in the ordinary and the extraordinary.  Thankful in the rain and the sun. 
        Because here's the thing--thankfulness is a choice.  A daily choice.  An hourly choice.  A moment by moment choice to take what the Lord's has given and allowed and to choose to trust Him, acknowledge Him, and thank Him.  We have to choose to give thanks.  It's not about a la la feeling of thankfulness but an act of the will to choose to give it, no matter our temporary, ever-vacillating emotions.  No wonder it's called thanks-giving not thanks-feeling. 
        But here's the remarkable part--when we make the choice to give thanks and be grateful, the feelings often will come and contentment and joy will arise in our hearts.  And it begins by choosing gratitude even in the small, seemingly insignificant things of life. 
         I love how Mary Mohler puts it--
        "Being grateful for the small things is a great entry into turning our thoughts around and focusing them on the Lord. If we have a mindset of gratitude even while carrying out the routine tasks of our day, we will find we have fewer thoughts of complaint and self-focus."
         So in this season of thanksgiving, here's a little challenge for each of us--choose to give thanks in the small tasks and routine chores of your life.  Today, every day over the course of November, how about we make a conscious effort to thank Him --out loud--in those small things?  Maybe even write down each day at least one routine chore or task for which you're thankful to your Heavenly Father.  Who knows how He will use it--but know this for sure: you are obeying His Word and bringing glory to God.  Even in the small...maybe even especially in the small.  For He is in it all--thank You Lord!
          To God be the glory. 
       

Amazing fall...awesome Father!

       
         "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands." Ps.19:1
         Thank You Lord for the simple, glorious, astounding beauty of Your creation.  It's been a challenging, even perplexing, few weeks--some things stunningly wondrous (the birth of our first precious grandchild--joy unspeakable!) and others incredibly painful (the deaths of several dear friends--great sadness and sorrow and a reminder that we live in a beautiful but terribly broken world). 
        So I guess I'd have to say that this past month or two has been hard...but holy.  Sadness...yet also sweetness.  It's simply true that we can have deep pain in our heart and yet also a song in our soul--    because of Jesus. He killed death that we might live.  He bore our sorrows and sins that we might bear His perfect righteousness.  And He conquered death and rose to again that we might be resurrected to new, eternal, abundant life. 
         But even in the midst of all of life's messiness and hardness and craziness, fall is happening all around us, and oh my, how refreshing to our souls!  Autumn shouts of God's creativity and glory.  In fact, I think fall is a teensy tiny splash or foretaste of heaven. 
        So for today, I simply want to rejoice in the beauty of this season and in this world that our Lord created.  It may be broken by our sin, but it's still astoundingly beautiful.  And if we'll let it, His creation will help to restore our souls.
         Here's how David Powlinson puts it: "What helps you to lay your cares down and get a fresh perspective on life? What enables you to step back into the business and hardship of life with a new joy? 
         The Psalms revel in creation. We marvel at the unparalleled beauty of a sunrise and sunset, and even more at a Master Artist so creative that He will erase His art every day to begin again the next. So many simple, unstained pleasures: collecting stones on a lakeshore. Watching autumn leaves drop. Innocent pleasures are a means to step away from what is hard, wearisome, or difficult in our lives into something restful and beautiful. They are not an escape from life's troubles, they are meant to refresh and strengthen us.
           What makes such pleasures innocent? It is the fact that there is a greater pleasure. That greatest pleasure is the Maker of all the innocent ones. Is devotion to God one of your pleasures? The lesser innocent pleasures come because the greatest pleasure, God Himself, is in His rightful place. Innocent pleasures don't pretend to save you or protect you. They don't promise you meaning and identity in life. They don't take life's fragility, pain, frustration, disappointment, and uncertainty and wash them away. They are not the giver of every good and perfect gift; they are just gifts that you enjoy. They are innocent because they don't pretend to be anything more."
            Thank You, Father, for the beauty of Your creation and for the simple pleasure of watching the leaves drift gently to the ground...of hearing the distant hoot of owls..of feeling the crisp, refreshing cool air on our skin...of tasting the spicy warmth of hot apple cider...of marveling over the brilliant oranges, reds and yellows dotting our landscape...of smelling the spiciness of fall baking and the aroma of cracking fires.  Yes, Your handiwork declares Your glory...but You are far, infinitely far, more glorious, more loving, more beautiful than even the very best our eyes can see and that this world can offer. 
         Fall is mighty amazing, so Lord You--the Maker of it all--You are absolutely awesome!
         What can we say but simply say, thank You, Father, thank You.  Thank You for these many little oasis's of refreshment--and reminders of You--along our sometimes arduous way.  And to You--the Giver of all, all, all good gifts--be all the glory.
             

Sorrowful...and yet rejoicing

        I've thought a lot recently about Paul's words in 2 Cor.6:10--"sorrowful, yet always rejoicing."  Paul describes himself and his fellow believers as enduring untold suffering, imprisonments, beatings, hardships, hunger, sleeplessness, persecution and on and on.  But despite all this, they are "sorrowful, yet still rejoicing."  How can this be? 
        These past few weeks have begun to teach me anew.  Many of us have carried the almost unbearable weight of sorrow upon sorrow when our dear friends' precious daughter, Wynn, went home to heaven. For Wynn, it's eternal glory and good, but for those left behind, there are simply no easy answers.  No way to fix here on earth what is unalterably, sorrowfully changed.  Though we desperately desire to, we simply cannot make things right. 
        And so we simply grieve with our dearly beloved friends.  We try as best we can to carry some tiny little portion of their grief...and in our deep and weighty sadness, we feel some sense of gratitude that the Lord has allowed us to share a minuscule portion out of the chasm of their sorrow.  Oh Father, help us to continue to carry that load and might our love, our grief, give some small measure of solace to our dear friends. 
       Yes, we are sorrowful and we grieve deeply...
        And yet even in the midst of so many tears, so much sadness, we sense Your presence, Lord. Your gentle but powerful love.  It's as if we hear dimly, softly even, the distant unmistakable roar of the Lion of Judah. We know that You are here, even in this dark place.  Just as You wept at the tomb of Lazarus--even while knowing You would momentarily raise Him from the dead--so, too, You weep with us. You weep at the terrible suffering and separation caused by death. You weep at the horrific price all mankind has paid for Adam and Eve's sin.  You weep for this world's brokenness. 
          You weep with those who weep.
          Thank You, Jesus, that even though You know the end of the story, even though You conquered sin and death, even though You know that Wynn lives in eternal light and joyful glory with You right at this very moment, yet, still, You are a God who weeps with us who are still in the shadowlands.  You are a "man of sorrows and acquainted with grief" (Isa.53:3) so You fully understand and enter into our sorrow. 
         And yet, You are "anointed with the oil of gladness beyond your companions." (Heb.1:9)
         You are a God who cries and laughs.  Who is God and man. Who died and conquered death.  Who was dead and is raised to new life.  Who judges and justifies.  Who is holy and full of mercy and grace.  Who suffers and yet rejoices.
        And so on this day, we Your children, are sorrowful and yet rejoicing.  We rejoice that Wynn lived a beautiful life to the glory of God--loving You, loving others.  And oh Father, how we rejoice that Wynn lives.  That she lives in Your glorious, eternal, joyful presence and light and love. 
        We rejoice that You have given us one another.  We rejoice for the gift of dear friends and family.  We rejoice for the gift of prayer...thank You that You hear us and that You are moving and working in countless ways we cannot see and do not know.  We rejoice for the comfort and wisdom and solace and strengthening power of Your Word. We rejoice that we are never ever alone--for You have promised never to leave us nor forsake us.  We rejoice that we're to walk not based on our terribly limited sight or our ever vacillating feelings, but based on faith in You, our Savior, Redeemer, Comforter, and King.
        And today, Lord, we simply rejoice for life's simple blessings--the promise of fall.  The crunch of leaves underfoot.  The bright orange of pumpkins.  The smell of fires and hot cider and cinnamon spice.  The soaring hawk. The sound of a friend's voice. The mug of hot tea. The cooing of a baby. The joy of loving others, even when that means hurting and weeping with them. 
        Give us eyes to see Your fingerprints at work all around us, and help us to rejoice even as we grieve.  In the midst of tears, please give us grateful hearts that see the invisible and fix our eyes on the One who endured the cross for the joy set before Him (Heb.12:2) The cross and joy--there it is again. Sorrowful and yet rejoicing.
        I close with these words I read several months ago by John Piper.  They struck a chord with me then, and now, well, they speak with even more force.  Might they encourage you today as you seek to see the unseen and choose to rejoice even in the midst of sorrow.  Here are Piper's words--

        "In any given day, are there not reasons to weep and reasons to rejoice?  So much depends on where you fix your mind. Do you dwell on what might have been (for example, what if my mother had not been killed when I was twenty-eight, but instead had been here for her grandchildren as they grew up)? Or do you dwell on what new things God has done (and will do!) to show the sufficiency of His grace (like another good wife for my dad and all my children on a heavenly trajectory!)?
        On this side of the resurrection of Jesus, and on this side of the final fulfillment of the promise to work it all for good (Rom.8:28-32), there will still be grief.  Yes, but as Paul says in I Thess.4:13, not as those who have no hope. Our weeping will be weeping on the rock of hope.
         My prayer for myself and all of you is that our weeping might be deep but not prolonged. And while it lasts, let us weep with those who weep. And when joy comes in the morning, let us rejoice with those who rejoice (Ps.30:5; Rom12:15)."

          Thank You, Lord, for the gift of this day, for the gift of Wynn, for the gift of our dear friends and family, for the gift of this broken but beautiful world, for the gift of Jesus, and for the gift of grieving deeply and yet rejoicing.  Thank You for weeping with us...and thank You for giving us reasons--innumerable reasons--to rejoice with You.
          To God be the glory.   
       

Come Lord Jesus, come

        We have all suffered an unimaginable loss.  Our dear friends' precious child--their beloved Wynn--has gone to heaven, and we all hurt and ache deeply, profoundly. We ache for the earthly loss of this priceless, wondrous girl who was truly a shimmering light in this dark world. We ache for our dear friends whose loss we simply cannot begin to fathom.  We ache for the sorrow, separation, and pain in this world that was caused so long ago by the bitter poison of sin.
        "Oh come, Lord Jesus, come," we cry out.  We cannot bear it.  Our friends cannot bear this burden alone.
         And yet, they are not alone.  You have given us to them--we, their friends, we, the Body of Christ, to be Your tear-wiping hands, Your servant feet, Your loving, compassionate heart.  Help us, Lord.  Show us how we can love, how we can help, how we can weep with those who weep, strengthen those with feeble arms and weak knees, and pour Your healing balm on those with broken hearts and wounded souls.  Help us be You incarnated as loving, caring friends.  Enable us to be Jesus with skin on to these ones we love so dearly.
          Please allow us somehow, someway, to help bear their burden. Oh Father, if only we could shoulder some of that pain.  Let me, let us, carry it for them, for at least a while.
         We know that You, only You--who knows the infinite loss of Your beloved Son--can truly understand the depth of their anguish.  Only You can be the love, the grace, the strength, the peace that they need.  Only You can be their light in this darkness and their peace in this chaos.  But help us to be instruments of all that You are and all that You give.
        "We don't know what to do, but our eyes are upon You." (2 Chron.20:12)
         Please come Lord Jesus, come.
         We're all struggling so deeply with this--"Why, Lord, why?" we cry out.  Yet thank You, Jesus, that You can handle all our doubts and fears, all our accusations and frustrations with why You--who are all good, all loving, and all powerful--would allow this. Thank You, tender but strong Lion of Judah, that we can express our every emotion to You...and You hear.  You grieve with us.  And You love us as our loving, perfect Father, our Abba.
          Help us to trust even when we cannot see, to have faith that overcomes our fears, and to believe in Your promises despite our wounded feelings.
         You know what it is to lose a priceless, cherished child--Your Son.  Your only beloved Son. Only You didn't lose Him...You gave Him.  You sacrificed Your one and only Son that we might have life.  Abundant, eternal life. Jesus was forsaken on the cross by His Heavenly Father that we might never, ever be forsaken. Such love, such sacrifice, we cannot understand or imagine.  But this we know: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)
         That kind of limitless love, that kind of scandalous grace we cannot begin to comprehend.  But when we look to the cross, we see Your love incarnate...Your love not just displayed, but demonstrated and experienced. We see a love so deep and divine, so unfathomable that that Love--whose name is Jesus--would suffer and die for our sins, for our fears, for our doubts, for our failures, for our weaknesses.
          You died that we might live.  And because You live, Wynn lives.  And because Wynn lives, we know, know, know that we will see that beautiful, brilliant, winsome, precious, loving beloved daughter of the King of kings again.  Fully healed...and radiant...and glorious.  In the midst of our terrible pain and sorrow, we can still say thank You, Jesus, thank You.
           And so even as we grieve deeply, help us to keep our eyes fixed on You, the author and perfecter of our faith, as we run the race You have set before each of us.(Heb.12:1-2) Wynn has finished her race triumphantly, and we praise and thank You for her, for her beautiful life, and for her family.  Equip and help us, Father, to love and encourage her family, our greatly loved friends. Love them with Your perfect love, Jesus our Good Shepherd, and give them the peace that passes all understanding that only You can give.  And fill us Holy Spirit that we might be Your healing balm, Your wisdom, Your compassion, Your tenderness, Your hope, Your light in this world.
           Come Lord Jesus, come. To You be the glory.

Bingley...and faith rather than fear

        It's raining, blowing and grey outside today...a reminder that we're all waiting and praying for  Dorian to head out to sea and away from our state and our coastline.  Please Lord, spare those in Dorian's potential path and send this hurricane east and away, far away from hurting any more folks.

         But I'm also thankful--thankful to be inside and dry.  Thankful to have electricity.  Thankful for the warmth and comfort of a mug of tea.  Thankful for a contented companion lying at my feet.  And thankful for the gift of holding in my lap the very words of Almighty God . His words breathed out on a page, just as fresh and warm and nourishing as the moment He first uttered them into life.  Thank You, Father, for the treasure of family, friends, home, health, quietness, and the time--even if only a few minutes--to hear You, worship You, thank You, and speak to You.
         And I'm also remembering the beauty of Your mountains--what a Creator You are!--and a simple lesson on fear that You taught us this weekend.  (Because only the Lord knows how He constantly He needs to remind and encourage yours truly--His forgetful, fretful, often faithless child-- of His forever faithfulness, grace, and abounding sufficiency!)
          You see, our dog, Bingley loves the mountains.  He loves the wonderful walks along deserted mountain roads.  He loves the ready availability of huge sticks.

         He loves the magnificent view from the 17th hole green...okay, actually he just loves getting to walk along with all of his family on the golf course.

         He loves the cooler weather, the abundance of deer to chase, and the tennis balls that often bounce into our yard from the nearby tennis courts.  He really does love the mountains.
         But there's one thing that spoils what would otherwise be unadulterated joy on his part--fear.  Specifically, fear that we will pack up and leave him.  Bingley's pretty much continually on edge in the mountains and whenever any sort of bag is located anywhere near the door, his fear gage begins rising.  Whenever we leave to go anywhere without taking him--oh mercy, terror.  And when it's actually time to pack up and leave, well, forget about it.  He's beside himself, ready to race into the car and sit there all day if that's what it takes to avoid being left behind. He's a ball of anxiety.
         It's pathetic, really, because do you think for one single second we'd ever "forget" to take Bingley with us when we leave to drive home?  Have we ever forgotten to take him back with us?  Of course not! We've never forgotten him, nor have we ever left him.  Our track record on that is spotless--because we really love our dog! I can say with one hundred percent confidence that we will never ever forget to take him!
       Moreover, we feed him everyday, twice a day. Never forgotten, not even once.  We take him for a walk everyday--rain or shine, blazing hot or freezing cold.  Never forgotten, not even once.  We give him those fancy smancy sweet potato dog chews everyday...I could go on and on.
       The point is, Bingley has nothing to fear, and he has every reason in the world for complete faith and trust in his people.  But he doesn't.  I reckon that's because he doesn't remember--or somehow in his doggy brain discounts--all of our never failing faithfulness in the past.
        Hmmm. Sound familiar?
        Isn't our fear ultimately a mark of our forgetfulness?
        We're filled with fear because we've forgotten (or utterly discounted) God's relentless goodness and faithfulness to us in the past.  We forget--or we choose not to recall--how He strengthened and helped us through all those impossible-seeming challenges or sorrows we faced last year, or last month, or last week. We forget who He is and His character.  We forget that He was and is always good, always loving, always forgiving, always full of grace--even when we were and are utterly undeserving and unlovable.  We forget His Word and His promises.
         And what's the antidote to this irrational, amnesiac fear?  It's to read, remember, and rehearse.  Read His Word and His promises. His Word is a treasure trove of wisdom and strength.  A few examples from just one Psalm: "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life: of whom shall I be afraid?" (Ps.27:1) "Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear, though war arise against me, yet I will be confident." (Ps.27:3) "I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!" (Ps.27:13-14) 
          Read His Word and His promises.  Remember His character, His faithfulness, His deliverances, and His goodness to you in the past.  And rehearse those promises--say them out loud.  Share with someone else how God delivered you in the past.  Perhaps  most importantly, preach it to yourself!  Rather than allowing fear to do the talking, you do the preaching to yourself.  Remind yourself of God's Word, His faithfulness, His goodness.
        He hasn't failed you yet...why on earth do you think He will fail you this time?  He was faithful then...whey would you fear that He who is changeless and perfect, won't be faithful today...and tomorrow and next year? He's never forsaken you or forgotten you before...don't you realize He will never forsake or forget you in the future?
         If you ever doubt that, look at the cross.  Look at the lengths to which your Heavenly Father went to save you and to demonstrate His love.  He sent His beloved Son to die for your sins and rise from the dead to give you eternal life.  He promised that He would never ever leave you or forsake you. It's a promise signed with His blood.  He hasn't changed, and His Word is still true.
         So fear, take a hike!  You're just as useless and ridiculous as Bingley's absurd fear of being left.  Fear, you're not welcome or wanted here anymore, because we have a forever faithful, eternally good, infinitely wise, and awesomely powerful Lord.  We will trust in Him and not be afraid.
       Don't forget and be fearful.  Instead, read...remember...rehearse and be filled and fueled with faith in the your Heavenly Father.
       To God--the forever faithful One--be all the glory.