“The Results Are In Amigo. What’s Left to Ponder?”
Ross and I had the chance to go see Jordan Peterson speak the other night. He’s a Canadian psychologist, philosopher, professor, counselor, and thinker we have been following for a while now. Even if you don’t agree with him, the way he communicates with so much intelligence and courage is astounding. One thing he said that I found fascinating was about the way psychologists have been studying fear for years as if it is something learned, but they have been getting it backwards. He said that actually, it is security that is learned. (Implying that fear/ anxiety is our baseline, and we learn security through our experience).
He’s big on facing fears and says “what you need is exactly where you don’t want to look.” I was undone when he started talking about Moses in the book of Exodus holding up the bronze snake so that anyone who looked upon the snake would be healed from the actual snakes biting and killing them. They had to look at the thing to be saved from the thing. (Fast forward to Jesus being lifted up on the cross and then your mind is just completely blown by centuries of story unfolding to that point in time when we must look to Jesus who becomes death in order that we might be saved from death ourselves). We have to look at that thing that most scares us in the face in order to be saved.
But back to security being learned…
I love this idea pertaining to the security we already have in Christ, but how we have to learn to live and walk that out in order to really experience it. Especially during times of suffering, pain, and, confusion… when it feels like there are a million reasons to fear.
We learn to live out of a posture of security by REMEMBERING (the thing the Israelites failed to do over and over again) and REMINDING ourselves of what is true. We do this by renewing our minds with truth from Scripture, and by continuing to take that next step of obedience. This is a posture of security, the opposite of living in fear.
The enemy wants to bring us down with fear and doubt and the temptation to control, but we have opportunities all day long to choose the path of trust and security.
The truth is that we are fully loved, accepted, and empowered to do the work God has set before us each day. We have nothing to fear with Christ leading and holding us. “For in him we live and move and have our being.” Not by our power or might, but by the power of God.
As Hansel once famously said in the movie, Zoolander…
“The results are in amigo. What’s left to ponder?”
The results are in amigo. Christ has already done it on the cross. Our salvation is secure because of Him. We are fully loved and accepted… there is nothing left to fear. Let’s step away from fear each day and press on to live out the freedom we securely have in Christ. Let’s put our attention on what makes us secure and we will become more secure.
Galatians 5:1 says “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” This implies action. This implies taking hold of something that belongs to you. This implies a pushing against that which holds you down in order to live in this freedom.
*Some practical application to ponder and pray through:
How might God be calling you to remind/ remember/ renew your mind?
What is your next step on the path of obedience and trust?