"Inhale Spirit - Exhale Flesh"

By: Joanne Viola

In recent days, I have had several conversations with different people and the subject at hand was “fear”.

We often use other words to describe our feelings – like worry, concerns, anxiety – so we don’t use the word “fear”.

Our fears, if we are honest, are legitimate. We fear getting an incurable disease, the death of a loved one, losing our jobs, never finding a mate, our mate leaving us, our children becoming sick, having a car accident, and many other circumstances.

But here’s the problem with our fears – all of these situations may never occur in our lives. The fears live in our thoughts.

The very first day of reading a Lent devotional turned my thoughts to Psalm 1, where I read:

"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper." (verse 1-3, NKJV)

We desperately need to meditate on God’s Word, reading it every day, if we are going to successfully silence our fears. 

“Like a tree, the godly person is alive, beautiful, fruitful, useful, and enduring. The most important part of a tree is the hidden root system that draws up water and nourishment, and the most important part of the believer’s life is the “spiritual root system” that draws on the hidden resources we have in Christ.”

(from The Wiersbe Study Bible, commentary notes page 752)

We are to delight in His Law, meditate on the Word and therein, lies the blessing. As we reflect on His Word, thinking deeply on it so as to apply it to our lives, His Word begins to change us.

Psalm 1

to him who holds my breath
inhale Spirit
exhale flesh
You alone are worthy
of all of my words
to You, of You, from You
now and forevermore.

(by Karen Fendick, “From Ashes To Glory: A Psalm a Day”)

“Inhale Spirit – exhale flesh”, a little more each day.
Dispel the fears and discover anew,
there is joy to be found in following Jesus.

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