The "Whoosh!" of Panic

Even when we feel shaken, God has already seen the situation and overcome.

It was a dark and stormy night. No, really, it was! We were on our annual fun family camping getaway in the mountains. Our tent was being absolutely hammered by the rain. I had no idea what time it was, but I was hoping it was close to morning and close to the storm ending because I seriously needed to pee. It was in that moment of contemplation that I heard it...a bear growling. This was no slight growl. I’m talking full-out, angry snarling that only happens when the bear is in desperate need of human food. It sounded like it was directly outside our tent. I was frozen on my air mattress. The children and husband snoozed peacefully through the clamor. I wasn’t about to get up and get a visual but I could see it in my mind - overturning coolers, rummaging through the trash, licking its paws after a delicious treat of our leftovers. I started to sweat with anxiety. I shook my husband until he awoke with a surprised, “Huh? What's wrong?” all loud and inconsiderate of the fact that at the slightest noise, that bear might come tearing into our sleeping area and eat our kids. I whispered to let him know what was going on mere inches from our toes when suddenly...gasp! He heard it too! That terrifying growl from deep within the empty bowels of our ferocious enemy! Ok, good, I wasn’t crazy. Hubby heard the same scary noise. I began to tremble. My stomach started churning and a feeling of panic began to creep in. I told Noah to hurry up and do something about it! This was getting serious and we needed to rectify the situation and fast! He flicked on his flashlight and, like a lunatic, unzipped the tent door. There he discovered the ravenous bear. Only it wasn’t a bear at all - it was water running off our rainfly and onto a cooler. It echoed in such a perfect surround-sound manner that it sounded exactly like a growl. We felt pretty silly afterwards but it made me stop and consider - what else in life do we needlessly panic about? I can imagine Mary could have given into panic when she learned she was carrying the baby Jesus. She must have considered the possibility that she could become an outcast or even stoned and killed. Instead, she sang a song about glorifying the Lord, then visited relatives, held onto her fiance, and took a long journey on donkey-back. Isaiah 28:16 says, “So this is what the Lord God says: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.’” The word “shaken” at the end of the verse is, in fact, an onomatopoeia. I don’t know if you learned about those in school, but it’s basically a word that sounds like the sound it is describing, such as, honk, whack, vroom, shush, or ding-dong. So when you say it in Hebrew, it sounds almost like you’re saying, “Whoosh!” It literally means to flee with alarm; to show haste, act quickly, hasten, come quickly, or hurry. In Job 20:2, it is used figuratively to describe violent internal emotion. Perhaps similar to how one might feel if they thought the only thing separating them from a terrifying bear was a thin piece of polyester? Have you ever felt the “whoosh” of panic setting in? I’m sure we’ve all experienced it. Maybe there are bills due and no money in the account, or a baby falls out of the cradle. A nasty pandemic sweeps the world or a beloved pet is lost. Even the reverse - the desire for something positive - gets us riled up. If I don’t find the right spouse, I won’t ever be truly content. If my child doesn’t get into the college of his choice, both he and I will be miserable forever. None of this is wrong or bad - money is a useful and necessary tool, we desire for our kids to be safe and happy, pets are wonderful, viruses are beastly, and so on. But they’re still all earthly. If we are in haste for God to bless us with earthly blessings, will we then be satisfied? In a frenzy, we rush about in a futile attempt to reign in the situation. All the while, God is on His throne, NOT panicking. He’s not wringing His hands. There is no churning in His tummy, no uncertainty or doubt. He is at rest, He is unshaken. That verse tells us about Jesus as our base, our support, our bedrock. He is our defense against every attack. We tend to forget Him and build our shelters on frivolous and misleading hopes, which, of course, will be swept away when the storm comes. When the whoosh of panic arrives, we don’t like how it feels so we hurry up and try to get rid of it, or we panic about the panic! What we are supposed to do is go to Jesus and abide in Him, the tested stone. But what does that look like? For me, it is getting alone and allowing that panic to just exist while I talk to the Lord. I don’t need to ignore it or be afraid of it, but there is no rush to replace it. God does that part. I cannot be in a hurry. I pour out all my emotions. I tell Him how I feel and what I am thinking. The panic or the fear might threaten to take over but in His presence, there is love. Love overcomes all fear. I let the tears flow. If I look closely at my thoughts, fears, and emotions, the true object of my worship is often revealed. There may be something God wants to show me. When I rest upon Him with all of my weight, then I am safe. It means I need to abandon those other false shelters that don’t actually provide protection. I spill my guts and His love washes over me, acknowledging all of the angst, confusion, and frustration and He loves me through it. I can praise Him right there in the center of the storm, in the midst of the giving and taking away. When the fog lifts and the tears dry up, even if nothing in the circumstance has shifted, I am at peace, and as Mary sang, “...my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful...the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.” (Luke 1:47-49) Living our lives on the solid foundation of the Cornerstone, whose name is Jesus, is sweeter than any other answer. He is the safe haven while we wait for peace in our world and for our eternal home. Remember, the grave is empty. No level of panic or being shaken can overcome the certainty and the power of the resurrection!