By: Pastor Jarren Rogers

When we talk about anxiety and fear, we are essentially talking about human beings being overwhelmed with the weight of our questions.

No matter what you are anxious about, no matter what you fear, the components of your worry are questions that you can’t answer. “How will I pay for all of this?” “How am I going to get through this?” “How will I overcome this?” “Will this ever end?” “Will I ever find peace?” “What do I do?”

Questions such as these fling themselves around our minds 24/7 and make our heads spin. We feel their burden on our shoulders both day and night. 

What if we could find the answers to such questions? What if we realized that the answers to our questionings are never found in ourselves?

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom” (James 3:13).

James is chock-full of good Christian guidance. This is only one small portion. In this verse alone, James connects wisdom with humility. If you want to have wisdom, it requires humility. If you claim to have wisdom, you must have humility. 

How does this verse connect to our fears and anxieties?

The only way we can be released from the burden of the questions we face is by drawing from the wisdom of God. For it is there, and there only, that we can find the answers to our burning questions. It is only in the wisdom of God we can answer, “What do I do?” and have assurance that the response is for our good and God’s glory. 

In the midst of our fear, it is vitally important that we not fall into the trap of self-absorption that hardship so naturally brings. Difficulty and worry pull us further into ourselves. We become so selfishly consumed that it is no longer possible to love our neighbor nor to love God.

Humility is the key. Bowing before God and admitting our faults as well as our shortcomings. We must confess our deficiency and accept the power that is offered to us from the Holy Spirit. Only after submitting ourselves to God and being filled with the Spirit is our mind transformed, and the wisdom of God imparted upon us. 

This has been a year filled with fear, anxiety, and many many many questions. I’m sorry to say that next year may carry much of the same. But the good news is that there is hope. There is wisdom available. There is help within reach.

This Christmas season, may God teach us a lesson in humility. Let us not get so lost in ourselves that, in the midst of our questioning, we fail to hear His voice crying out, “I am here.”

Read more of this Advent Devotional and other Daily Pursuits at www.dailypursuits.blog