https://youtu.be/wMmmbJlWhtk The Afters I will Fear No More
“The Things That Scare You to Death”
This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 (NLT)
Safari Adventure
Nicky and I took our granddaughter, Nixon Lyn, to the Alabama Safari Park last weekend. As we packed up the car, it was difficult to contain my excitement. I absolutely could not wait to see Nixon Lyn’s expressions and reactions when she gets her first glimpse of the animals. Nicky, or Nixon Lyn’s Pop, brought along a bucket of fruit loops for the ride to the park. By the time we arrived, there were fruit loops scattered throughout the truck.
As we pulled into the park, we stopped to pay and asked the attendant for buckets of feed so that Nixon Lyn could feed the animals. As we rolled into the park, Nixon Lyn’s eyes got that first glimpse I was so excited to see, and as she smiled, her eyes lit up. She began to greet all of the animals with her, “Hey, hey, hey” as she patted her leg and leaned in close to the window calling them.
The Llama scare 
Moments later things went downhill. A llama approached the window and it was super friendly. I never realized how odd Llama’s look. Their eyes are massive and they do a leaning thing as they stand and look at you. As the llama stuck it’s head into the window, Nixon Lyn became unglued.She began patting her chest, loudly telling us, in her own language, that the llama’s needed to be gone. It was truly such a funny site, but we did feel really bad for laughing.
She did not like the llama getting so near to her. They made her very uncomfortable. I tried again and again to get her to see that the llama’s were not going to hurt her and that they just wanted the food in the buckets. I tried over and over again to get her to enjoy the animals and to see the Llamas were not a threat to her, but it was no use. She was too worked up and she just didn’t like them and how close they approached her. There was not a thing I could do to get her to interact with them or enjoy them. She was done with the Llamas.
“In My Face”
How worked up do we get with the things we do not like in our lives? I know when things are in my face and I really just don’t want to deal with them. I get worked up and I can’t see past what I am faced with. But what if we just faced the things that are in our face? What if we don’t let them get us worked up and just deal with them, thinking of these things as stepping stones in our situations?
“What It Meant” 
That night, we Facetimed Nixon Lyn’s parents to ask them about what the patting of the chest meant. It was super cute and we got so tickled each time Nixon Lyn did this. Moments later, Nixon Lyn’s other grandparent, KK, told us what the patting of the chest meant. When a loud timer goes off at KK’s house, they say, “that scares me to death!” So the next few days as we asked Nixon Lyn, “What did those llamas do to you?” She grins and pats her chest saying, “they scare me to death.”
I encourage you today not to let the things that are in your face scare you to death. Face them head on and get through them. Don’t let them hold you hostage in your panic and let fear set in. God’s going to prompt you to do plenty of things in your life that make you uncomfortable so don’t ignore Him. Don’t get comfortable skipping these uncomfortable moments.
Counting My Blessings,
Susan Browder
