It may look like I'm surrounded.
But I'm surrounded by You.
Feeling surrounded doesn't necessarily bring thoughts of butterflies and kittens to mind. Being surrounded doesn't usually give someone the idea of being calm and peaceful. Surrounded, many times, is used in a negative way, to explain a situation in which we want to escape from.
Surrounded means to be cut off, to be encircled, to be completely enclosed on all sides and cut off from communication. When we think of people surrounding us it is scary. When we think of work surrounding us it brings anxiety. Kids surrounding us can feel smothering. Projects, to-do lists, deadlines, responsibilities surrounding us can feel overwhelming. We can build expectations for ourselves that begin to surround us that seem impossible. Everything that surrounds us becomes so enclosed it feels like we can't breath.
It may look like I'm surrounded.
But I'm surrounded by You.
We all know what it feels like to have moments of angst, this is a deep anxiety or dread. We also know what it feels like to be calm, which is pleasantly free and quiet. I do not know many people that would choose angst over calm. I know that I wouldn't. There was a time when I used to thrive off of drama but I never liked feeling anxiety or dread. I was always searching for "inner peace." I looked in all the wrong places.
I knew better growing up. My mom was a single mom, but she was a Jesus following, God loving woman who worked very hard to make us a beautiful life and I knew about Jesus. I didn't know Him but I knew about Him. Still as the teen years approached I made a lot of wrong choices and I surrounded myself with all the worldly things that I desired.
It may look like I'm surrounded.
But I'm surrounded by You.
Took me 16 years before I got pointed in the right direction and stopped taking detours. That is a lot of time wasted but I can't do the what ifs. I tried jumping down that rabbit hole but there was no point. I will always be a work in progress. And what matters is that my relationship with Jesus is a priority. I will never say it is easy. I will never say it is perfect. There are times when all the things above still surround me.
We live in a fallen world. It is filled with hate and darkness and it surrounds us every single day. We do not just fight battles with people, work, kids, deadlines, friends, anxiety, peer pressure, depression and everything else. We fight spiritual battles for our souls everyday. Satan doesn't want us to notice what else we are surrounded by. He only wants us to see the negative things, the overwhelming things, the things that he knows will pull us down. Satan wants us blinded from the One thing that surrounds us that changes it all.
It may look like I'm surrounded.
But I'm surrounded by You.
We are completely, wholly surrounded by God. Amongst all the other things that surround us, God is the one force surrounding us that isn't negative. He comes with no strings attached. He comes with no demands, no deadlines, no expectations. He surrounds with nothing but the open arms of love and grace. His embrace is like no other. His calm is like no other. His peace is like no other. There is nothing out there that will surround you like He does.
His Word and His love has changed my life. Instead of focusing on all the other things that surround me I focus on Him. Instead of wishing those things away I focus on Him. Instead of trying to run away from my responsibility I focus on Him. Instead of trying to hide from the world I focus on Him. Instead of regretting my past I focus on Him. I steady myself and I say out loud " It may look like I'm surrounded. But I'm surrounded by You."
And it's not just me. I am not the only one He surrounds...
It may look like you are surrounded.
But you are surrounded by Him.
"It may look like I'm surrounded but I'm surrounded by you" are lyrics from a song we sing in church called "Surrounded" by UPPERROOM. You can listen to the whole thing here
