Should we be Faithful or Prepared.

“This happens every single time she gets a runny nose. It gets really bad, and doesn’t go away for weeks and she needs antibiotics. It happens every time, no matter what.”

I sigh and bite my tongue. Because of the way this mom is talking I know exactly how this appointment will end- with her yelling at me that she’s right and I’m wrong. Her yelling at me that even though her child has only had one hour of runny nose the only possible cause and required outcome is giving her antibiotics for a sinus infection. I will not be able to convince her there are any other possible causes, possible options for treatment, or possible alternatives for timeline. Her fears have determined everything she believes. She has written her future with her words. (Just an aside, this not meant to insult anyone- I completely understand that when it comes to a child, mom usually knows best. This is just an example to make us question when we use the phrase “I know exactly what will happen”.)

Sometimes we don’t understand the power that our words have. They point us in directions and assumptions and sometimes write our future, or the future of those around us. People don’t understand that when you constantly call a child “a troublemaker ,” they will continue to walk out that path. People don’t understand how much concentrating on “Not saying the wrong thing” can make you do exactly that. And far too often, we don’t realize the faith we are creating in our own life with our words, good or bad.

There’s been a lot of crazy things happening in the world in the last few weeks. As a Christian and a doctor, sometimes it’s hard for me to know how to respond to situations like these. There’s the Christian way to respond, the medical way to respond, and the natural tendencies that I have as a person that make me want to say or do a certain thing. But I need to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of all three in order to respond well. Most of the time, I am not going to respond, “Don’t worry, God’s going to take care of all of this.” That’s not because I don’t trust God, but because I know how He works. He does intervene and sometimes does amazing things without us, but He doesn’t usually do things in spite of it; more often, He partners with us. It’s amazing how often God uses someone in your life to speak to you, encourage you, or correct you. And that’s not because He can’t, but because He is relational at his core. He likes to involve us in everything, just because He can. Which means we have an important part to play every single time.

So when it comes to a big medical problem or medical risk, I’m not just going to sit back in unawareness and call it faith. I’m going to assume that God wants me to operate in the medical wisdom and knowledge that I have obtained as well as faith in Him. I’m going to do everything within my part to do, and trust Him to protect and keep me safe and well in the things that I cannot control.

And lastly, I’m going to look hard at my own assumptions. My own assumptions about the future and where I expect things will go. My own fears because of what I’ve heard others say or worry about. My own declarations about what “I’m sure will happen” in the next few weeks. I take every thought captive. (2 Corinthians 10:5) I take every recommendation, every article, every news story, and I give it to God and ask him if it is simply fear, or a wise warning that I need to respond to or act on.

And more than anything, I trust God. I trust that He has the best in mind for me and will direct and protect me. And that doesn’t mean that everything will end perfectly, but it does allow me to stop living in fear, and stop declaring bad pronouncements over my life and giving them more ground to come true

Thankfully, prayerfully, and amazingly, things do not always end as bad as we assume they will. But let’s not sit around pretending that we have no impact whatsoever on the way they go. So let’s think, make decisions, and move forward not in fear, but in wise faith.