Sinking Down

Everywhere around me I see people who are anxious and walking in fear. In Utah, we have one of the highest suicide rates in the country, attributed, at least in part, to the religious culture and the desire to look good to others and therefore hide what’s really going on inside. Individually we can be a helpful solution to the problem, but ultimately our reliance on God is where true healing occurs. When we have life-giving relationships, where we openly confess our thoughts, feelings and actions and are received with love, acceptance and forgiveness, I tend to believe that we would be less anxious and fearful. Even though these types of relationships, I believe are what God intended, there are times in each of our lives where safe, loving relationships are not available.

When someone commits suicide, people will often times comment that they had no idea how much that person was struggling.  Why is this the case? After hearing story after story from women in prison, I realize that many people grow up in circumstances where it isn’t safe to speak openly to anyone around them. For these women, their solace has been found in crying out to God alone. I’ve been sharing with them something that God showed me in His Word about the inner turmoil they are experiencing.

I’ve recently been going through a bible study book called “Be Still and Know That I Am God” and in it the author, Sher Pai, directed me to several verses. In Deuteronomy 31:6 it says “Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail (raphah) you or forsake you.” The word fail stood out to me and I wanted to understand more what the original Hebrew word meant. Raphah means to sink down, to relax, let drop, abandon, let go, to be quiet, or to be weak. Another verse that the bible study directed me to was Psalm 46:10, where He says “Be still (raphah) and know that I am God…”. What struck me in these passages was that the very thing He was asking me to do, He said that He would never do. As I am being still (letting go of all my concerns, abandoning the worry), He is not being still. God is not letting go of my concerns or abandoning them.  He is taking up all of those concerns that I give to Him and He will not let go of them, He will take care of them for me. There is so much freedom in knowing that my concerns will be in the hands of the Almighty God and I don’t have to keep thinking about them and trying to figure out how to deal with them.

During the cold winter seasons in Utah, I often will get into my hot tub. When I get in, I will “sink down” into the water, and the pain of the chill running through my body goes away.  I often use that time to pray and give my concerns to God. When I saw that the definition of the word raphah included “to sink down”, I realized that this was a great picture of what it looks like to give my cares to God. If as I live and go throughout my days, I do so with the same relaxing state of mind that my mind and body have in the hot tub, I won’t have anxiety or  fear. Instead I can rest in knowing that God is in control.

In these days of anxiety, fear and depression all across the world, my hope is that more and more, we who belong to Christ would “sink down” and release all our cares to God. When our cares are in the hands of our Creator, we are freed up to love others in a life-changing way. We can be those life-giving friends that listen and give love and grace in response. We sink into God, this is of first importance, especially when we don’t have healthy relationships. But God’s heart is also that, as we trust Him, we are free to be better friends. In the face of anxiety, fear, and depression, having a God who doesn’t “sink down” and friends who help reinforce that by their grace and love is the best provision.