Israel & Rachel Campbell "SOUP" Podcast

Israel & Rachel Campbell SOUP | Season 2 Episode 8 "What to do when the world is afraid" PART 2

Israel & Rachel Campbell | Flourishing Church

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Have you ever wondered how fear can make us behave irrationally, and how we can counteract it? In this enlightening discussion, we unfold the importance of having a plan when fear strikes and illustrate how fear can impact our decision-making abilities. We use examples from horror movies to explain how fear can blind our rationality and we share a lighthearted moment discussing potential episodes based on our own fear-driven decisions. 

We then take you through a spiritual journey, emphasizing the power of retaliating against fear not with conflict, but with faith and love. Drawing from biblical examples, we advocate for responding to fear with kindness, generosity, and unwavering faith in God. We explore the potent forces of prayer and the importance of setting our minds on spiritual things above the earthly. We discuss the danger of becoming too focused on worldly knowledge and stress the importance of giving difficult situations to the one who can fix it.

In a personal revelation, we share our own encounters with anxiety attacks and how praying in the Spirit helped us triumph over them. We underscore the importance of the Holy Spirit and how it can fortify our inner selves. We delve into the concept of speaking in tongues, and how it can provide us with discernment and a closer connection to God. Wrapping up, we offer a prayer for those who haven't yet been filled with the Holy Spirit, hoping that they too can experience the power of this divine connection. We trust that this discussion will aid you in overcoming your fears and in nurturing a robust connection with your spiritual community.

Speaker 1:

We are so glad that you are joining us and, rachel, you look so fall.

Speaker 2:

I'm trying to bring our fall weather here, but it's hot. I'm in a sweater and I'm just trying to make it.

Speaker 1:

You're going to try to make it cozy.

Speaker 2:

I'm probably going to turn the air on which is your favorite.

Speaker 1:

Oh, that'll make it feel like Christmas. How fun.

Speaker 2:

Perfect.

Speaker 1:

Pumpkin spice latte. It is time to go.

Speaker 2:

Welcome to the Israel and Rachel, your typical white girl, kimball soup, which you just noticed, was the soup.

Speaker 1:

A lot of ingredients in there Was the soup. I'm the soup, you are the soup of the day, but we're so glad that you joined us. I think last week Rachel you said it so well as it kind of feels like we get an opportunity to jump into your living room, your life, your commute, whatever you are doing, and we get to be a part of it. And so this is great and we are. I guess we're just jumping right into from last week, which I think was easy to have this whole thing written out, we're ready to go. And then we looked at the time and went, oh my goodness. And then we're like we better add part two. And that's just easier to do when you already know what we talked about.

Speaker 1:

And so last week we, you know, we just begin to have the in kind of the discussion about what do you do when the world is afraid? And again, keep on saying this. I love how you articulated that there are some things when a pilot just goes through, and this they do it every time first click this, first check this, then do this, and they have this whole system that they do, and I think that there's really good for us, as Christ followers, to have some systems in place that we do consistently, so that when there is fear, when there is difficulties in a crazy world that we're living in, we just kind of not that we automate, but that we maybe these do become automatic, like this is what we do when there's fear, this is what we do when the world is afraid, and I thought last week was just incredible and really looking forward to this week just adding to some of those things.

Speaker 2:

Can I just say to one of the reasons why I think it's really important to do this sequence is that you already have in front of you like hey, when fear and discouragement try to enter into my heart, I'm going to do these things is because you know there's been studies about how, when people are afraid like if somebody jumpscares you or something happens and all of a sudden you're pushed into fear it says there's proven studies that our IQ lowers because all of our blood is going towards saving us for survival and fighting back or running, fighting, fight or flight.

Speaker 2:

But both of those two things require all of our energy to go into that, and so they say that fear actually makes you dumb and it makes you make the wrong decisions. That's why there's those funny memes about, you know, when there's a scary horror movie, why do they always do the wrong thing? Why do they never think of the logical thing to do in that moment? But really fear. It is proven, there have been studies that fear makes you dumb, and so I think that's why it's important to have things that you know. This is my sequence when I begin to be afraid.

Speaker 1:

Wow, I guess we could even just do an episode nine on that.

Speaker 2:

That was brilliant, just that stories of how dumb we've been because we've been afraid.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and it's so true. We always watch the movie. Why are they hiding in the garage? Why don't they leave? But fear because the blood is rushing and it's such a good thing. That's why we want to automate, or we want to just make it automatic.

Speaker 1:

This is how we respond in those seasons and last week you didn't get the a whole podcast, go get it but just to highlight it we talked about shifting the atmosphere with praise. We talked about reciting the things God has done for us and then, of course, reciting his word and we'll talk a little bit more about that today guarding and limiting. How much are you absorbing? You can only handle a certain amount. And then really we close with congregate, which I just love that. Don't isolate congregate, gather together. That's the important of the church. That's why we do what we do.

Speaker 1:

And then one of the things that I put into my flight pattern or whatever, when there is, when the world is afraid, is I retaliate. I think so many times we're helpless and we can't necessarily fix this situation or fix that, but there is something spiritual that has to do with retaliating and help me what I say this, but retaliating in the spirit. So the Bible says this. The greatest, the one of the greatest terrorist was actually Goliath. And he comes to David and he says this is what I'm going to do, this is what I'm going to do, this is what I'm going to do. And David doesn't just take it, he says well, okay, but I'm going to come to you. Who are you? This uncircumcised Philistine that would come, you know, and I, and God is going to do this, and God is going to do that.

Speaker 1:

And so I think there's something about, when we're fearful, retaliating, and what I would say is retaliating in faith and retaliating in love. So I can't fix this issue in another country, but what I can do is I can love my neighbors that I don't know very well, and so I'm just going to give them some, like not that I would, but you might tip back, cook them some extra cookies that you were making you know what I mean, and like paying it forward at the gas station or paying it forward at the coffee, but just like intentionally going. I'm retaliating. Everything in me wants to be afraid, everything in me wants to close off everything in me, and I am going to retaliate against fear, and and I am going to start loving my world, when the world feels like it's falling apart yeah, I mean it's biblical to do, because the Bible says that it's his perfect love that abolishes fear.

Speaker 2:

And I never think of the antonym to fear as love, you know, because I want the Antonin to fear to be conquering. You know fighting back by, you know removing every obstacle of fear, but the Bible says that it's his love that abolishes our fears, and if that's the case, then the way we retaliate is by being loved. We begin to love people that might be afraid too, and showing the love of Jesus might open the door for them not to be afraid anymore too. And we talked about how God's not up in heaven panicking, and so when we respond by doing something for someone else, you know, for me yesterday I had a lot going on, a lot.

Speaker 2:

I was, you know, fighting the fight of faith in my own heart, and I had somebody in our church who was really afraid and she needed to talk through it. She needed me to have the word of God as my weapon, to give to her, to be her weapon, and I could have easily been like this isn't the right time because I'm walking through this, I got this. I have a long list of reasons why it's not the right time. But I love what you said, that when we retaliate it actually takes the focus off of our reasons why, like the whole list of the things that we need, the things we're afraid of that might happen, and it puts it back on. God is so good and he refills me when I feel somebody else.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and I think it's just a good, it's a reflex. It's a reflex, train your reflex to. When there is fear, oh yeah, I'm going to bless somebody when there's fear. I'm going to encourage somebody. When there's fear, I'm going to go out of my way and show the love of God If fear, I'm going to smile. I am actually going to smile because the world right now is freaking out and if I can just smile it's going to be something into holy, and so I just think it should be part of our reflex of when it is, then the Christ follower should be more generous. Christ follower should be more full of joy, because it is our response. What do we do when the world is afraid? So I love that retaliate.

Speaker 2:

So good, one of the things that again, and also can I just I know that just that word retaliate. Can I just say one last thing, babe is retaliating is not fighting in the flesh with people who disagree with us, and I think you know.

Speaker 1:

I'm not trying to feel that, believe me.

Speaker 2:

Because, like when my mom was dying, there was a lot of emotional tension happening because of fear. All of us were afraid and it was really difficult to walk through that and even though we knew her final destination was with Jesus, that was really hard and there was a lot of flesh flying around in the atmosphere. And it's weird because my family started arguing. You would think that a family would pull together in times that were hard and perilous times, but actually the enemy loves those moments because he can jump on that flesh part of us and begin to cause us to fight, not in the spirit, and begin to fight in the flesh, and that just does so much damage. And so when we say the word retaliate, it's anti how the world retaliates. It's not retaliating in the flesh, it's retaliating in the spirit.

Speaker 1:

I'm really glad you brought that up, because there is this misnomer that somehow if we can be a keyboard, ninja, if we can be the watchman watch woman of the world and let everybody know what to fix it. It doesn't help. Yeah, we usually are wrong and we're off, and then it's really awkward later because we weren't right on it, and so I think that's really good. Maybe I should have thought of a different word than retaliation.

Speaker 1:

No, I love the word retaliation it is the right word, but it's not the way we would do it. Kingdom retaliation is completely different. In fact, I was just reading in Proverbs this morning that you know that what's the scripture? That talks about keeping coals on our enemy's head by loving them, serving them, giving them. You know, and it's actually so, the retaliation is upside down when it comes to the kingdom, but it is still so powerful to get rid of fear in our life.

Speaker 1:

One of the things that we were going to talk about last week and then this is so good. Part two is how. What to do when the world is afraid is we pray the word of God, and so you know, there's praying, which obviously is always good. We wouldn't ever not pray. Sometimes our prayers can be fearful, or it's just a pity fest, or it's just a. Here's what I'm stressed about God, and God can handle that, yeah, but there is a way to actually really win in this is when we pray the perfect word of God, and we pray the word of God over the situations.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, for me, one thing that I've been praying just with. Like you know, right now we're looking at crazy stuff happening in the Middle East. The absolutely is affecting us here in the United States and the entire world. It's hard to watch, it's hard to hear and it's hard to know what's the truth and what God's will and all of those things. Right, I just find so much peace in praying Psalms 91. I can just read a little snippet, but just maybe even close your eyes, unless you're on the treadmill or driving, but just meditate on this.

Speaker 2:

Whoever, whoever dwells in the shelter of the most high will rest in the shadow of the Almighty, I will say of the Lord. He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust. Surely he will save me from the foul air snare and from any deadly pestilence. He will cover me with his feathers, under his wing. I'll find refuge. His faithfulness will be my shield and my rampart. I will not fear terror by night, or the arrow that flies by day, or pestilence that stalks in the darkness that I can't see, or the plague that destroys at midnight. That pretty much covers everything we faced in the last five years, doesn't? It says 10,000 at your right hand, but it will not come near me. They may fall, but they will not come near me. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If we say that the Lord is our refuge, he will make his most high our dwelling and it just keeps going. And I just I'll add my kids names, I'll add our family, I'll add our church, I'll add our city and our country, our political leaders, and you know, I just really I said this last time and I wanna say it again I don't think God is asking us to choose sides.

Speaker 2:

I don't think God is asking us to be the just judge. I don't think it's. I think that that exhausts our strength of faith, and I think what God wants us to do is abide, is to come under the shadow of the most height and allow him to protect us and allow him to be God. He knows exactly what he's doing, he knows what we're walking through, he knows every answer, and so I don't think we need to have every answer, and when we do, it actually drips faith out of our heart and it causes us to take the reins and say God, you might not have this well enough. So let me make decisions on my own, and I just think that that's a real temptation, when times are scary and hard, to try to be the just judge and we don't pressure off, we don't have to be that.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and it doesn't mean that you don't have any convictions, doesn't mean that you don't have any beliefs, but I do believe. What you're saying, rachel, is so 100%. I'd rather declare God's word than my assumptions. I'd rather declare God's eternal word than what I heard on TikTok. I'd rather rehearse God's faithfulness. And Jesus, even when he was tempted by the enemy, says it is written and so it is important. Three times Jesus says it is written and then declares what it is written. It is written. You should not tempt, and it's all these things. And there has to be some prayers with the word of God. How do we get through this? I don't, to be honest, I don't know what to pray, but I can pray God's word and declare it. And what happens when we declare God's word? The Bible talks about that our mind is renewed, we start thinking according to his, our faith. The Bible says Faith comes by hearing and hearing by God's word. So we're declaring it. All of a sudden, fear is being moved out and faith is being pushed in For days like these.

Speaker 2:

Okay, so this scripture verse Philippians 4,. It says set your mind on things that are above. And the world wants us to say that we're being irresponsible if we're not totally consumed with all the fears of this world. But how do you know? There's a lot of lies floating around.

Speaker 2:

Even in the Christian world there's some things that aren't truths, and I think we have to set our mind on things that are above, because then it says in verse seven, the Philippians 4 and the peace of God that transcends our understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. That's it. I'd rather be called irresponsible with my mindset on the things that are above and allow God to be my defender, be the one who fights for me, be the one who is the just judge, and then I want peace. I want the peace of God to rule my heart and my mind so that I can move forward with faith, I can continue to build, continue to do what God's called me to do well, every day while I'm on this earth, and not be distracted with fear.

Speaker 1:

Yeah and let's. I mean, it's a sidebar here, so now I get to add my soup and I get to add my little rabbit trail.

Speaker 1:

But we do not wrestle in the flesh and we wrestle against principalities of darkness.

Speaker 1:

And so your rant, your keyboard, ninja, your so knowing about these things and making sure everybody knows is actually is not winning in the spirit.

Speaker 1:

You are trying to win in the flesh and you're actually afraid and that's why you're doing it.

Speaker 1:

The more dogmatic I have met people on these things, the more I've understood the reason they're so dogmatic is because there's an underlying thing of fear and one of the best ways is to not necessarily have to air your expertise, your opinion, air God's opinion, air God's expertise, rely and declare and pray his word over the latest sensationalist or whatever it is and there's some great people out there, great information, but I still take God's word over. That I'll never forget in Bible college when there was a subject that's been argued over for 2000 years ago, 2000 years in church theology, and this professor, one of the smartest guys that ever met, was so dogmatic about something and it just was like for me I'm like so 2000 years in your prayer you're teaching at Silver Lake Bible college and you're now the expert on this, like could there be a little wiggle room where we may not fully know, and I just think, in these areas of end times and what's happening, we might be wrong, and so the best thing to do is to pray God's word. Is that a pacifist of?

Speaker 2:

me. I don't think it's pacifist at all, because I'm gonna be really real. My dad is in heaven right now. He's with Jesus and every question is answered. But while he was on earth he was obsessed with in a really unhealthy way, within times and knowing the answers, and I just wonder how many people he could have led to Jesus if that wasn't what he was so fixated on, because he went to heaven and none of it changed. Wow, and that grips my heart. That really does affect the way I lead and the way that I serve. God is like.

Speaker 2:

My dad spent years, thousands and thousands of hours trying to figure it out and he went to heaven not knowing, and so those thousands and thousands of hours could have strengthened the kingdom in a much better way than all of those days trying to figure out my carmel, I mean, and and I'm not dishonoring him but I do think it can become a massive distraction that causes us to limp instead of running the race God's called us to be. What are? What is the Great Commission? To make disciples? To see people saved? To preach the good news of Jesus? To spread the love of God in such a powerful and impactful way, without fear that there are, the lost become found and we begin to Occupy heaven and the enemy's like. Why don't you talk about the end times? Why don't you just fix it on the Middle East instead of what God's actually? God's doing great things on earth right now. I want to be a part of it.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, we want to know it. Like we talked about the last one, we want to be aware of our world. We're not naive of the enemy's plans and strategies but, like you said, there is a purpose and a plan for us. And so how do we, what do we do when the world is frayed? One of the things we do is we begin to pray God's word, and that can change the situation. And and I think it ties into this is because we give it to the only one who can fix it. And that's how, what do we do when the world is afraid? We, we Give this, this situation to God. You can't look to me to fix it.

Speaker 1:

I know that we've got some situations in our own family's life that, like I Can't fix this, babe, or I can't fix this Chloe Phoebes islas, but what we can do is let's Give this to God, because he is the only one who can fix it. Our world is broken, our planet is broken. This, the sin Nature of humanity, is broken. And so what do we do when the world is afraid? We have to learn to give it to the right person who can fix it. If you're, we pray for our politicians, we pray for our leaders and nations and stuff like that. But if you're only looking to them to fix it, you're gonna be so disappointed and if you've ever been to the DMV, you know why the government Can't fix it. We've got to be able to hand it to the one who can amen, and you know, think about.

Speaker 2:

In the Bible, the first thing that God commanded Adam and Eve was not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and it was like I think he want the God wanted to start off all of humanity with. Having too much knowledge is going to trip you up, and Jesus emphasized over and over you must be like a child To enter the kingdom of God. Faith is connected to child likeness.

Speaker 2:

Child children are not freaking out right now, unless their parents are freaking out, but usually when you're, the parent is good, the kid is good, and so if you have fear perpetuated in your house, it starts with you, and when you're good, your kids are good, and we have walked through some things where it was really scary, but we were good.

Speaker 2:

Even if inside we weren't, we were good when we were speaking to our children, we were teaching them how to walk by faith and you know what they were good. They don't have these traumatic memories of some pretty traumatic times that we've walked through, and I think that there's a real key Right now to fighting fear is child likeness, is allowing there to be mystery between you and God, and like I don't have to figure this out. And the thing that brought the curse on Adam and Eve was Eating of the tree of knowledge. Is too much knowledge, google and the news and Having so much knowledge and thinking that we know is a real trap to the child likeness that is actually the doorway to having great faith and access to the presence of God, the peace of God, the mind of Christ. It takes child likeness, which is anti what the world teaches.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and I just remember telling baby, are babies, are our concerned child, she's first born, she can get, can. She can get a little concerned about things. And I just remember saying, hey, when you see me freak out about it, then you can freak out about it, but if I'm not freaked out about it, you don't need to be freaked out about it. You know, let me lead that way. And so I think what you were saying is so good our kids will be good if we're good, and I think our world will be good if we're good as Christ followers. But if we're we're not and we're Freaking out, then it just opens all of that up, and so I think that's really good and I think it ties into one of our last points or two of the last points, but my mind is on that, you know, trying to you don't have to be 100% full of faith to lead your family or to lead at your workplace or to lead in any situation at church. The notion of like well, gosh, they're so full of faith and I'm at like 70% or up at 51. You know, percent that's okay.

Speaker 1:

And I think in the Bible sometimes we see these stories, rachel, and we see them and we're like oh man, they were just so full of faith. Well, I know for a fact there was a percentage of fear, but the balance there was a balance. The faith outweighed the fear by maybe just a sliver. I mean, it was just like maybe a sliver more of faith caused them to walk in that. And so don't wait for 100%. What to do when the world is afraid. Don't wait for you to take action, don't wait for you to lead, don't wait for you to pray for somebody, don't wait for you to encourage somebody, because you're like well, when I'm fully full of faith, then I will. Right now, I'm still a little afraid. That's okay. That's okay to be a little bit afraid, but counter it with faith.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and I just want to say I would feel really, really bad if we cut this session off without also talking about the power of praying in the spirit. That is our secret weapon, and when my heart is overwhelmed, when I don't have answers and I just start getting that negative role going over and over in my own head, I begin to interrupt that by praying in the Holy Spirit, and God has given us prayer languages. When we're, you know, operating in the Holy Spirit, when we begin to pray in the spirit, it really does exchange our fear thoughts for our thoughts of what the Holy Spirit wants us to be thinking. And there have been so many times where I'll begin to pray in the spirit in a difficult, desert-y, dry season, and it will be really hard to start. It's like priming a pump, it's just like choosing to begin to pray in the spirit, turning on worship and beginning to pray in the spirit, and then in about two minutes it's always about the two minute marker all of a sudden these floods of faith, floods of Holy Spirit begin to rush into my heart and my mind and then it's like this flow and strength begins to come inside of me from the inside out is the power of the Holy Spirit and I access that.

Speaker 2:

My personal testimony is I used to, before anxiety attacks were cool. I used to have anxiety attacks when I was a little girl and my mom would begin to coach me to begin to pray in the spirit on my own and invite the Holy Spirit to come and just begin to move in my own heart and mind. And every time I started having this personal relationship with the Holy Spirit and he would empower me. If the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in me, it will quicken my mortal flesh body, those thoughts of fear, the thoughts of doom and gloom, and it will begin to raise it up and resurrect the Holy Spirit inside of me, just like the resurrection of Jesus. And so we have to know there's power inside of us and the key to that is beginning to pray in the spirit for half an hour, and that sounds really long, probably for some of us, but it goes by so fast once you tap into the flow of the Holy Spirit, right, izzy.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and I again, you keep on having these great insights that I'm like well, that would make another great podcast, not in a like cut you short, but like man, we could really talk about that. You know, maybe some people have heard about that praying in the spirit. Don't know how to pray in the spirit, being baptized in the Holy Spirit. The Bible says in the book of Acts that Jesus said hey, I'm going to give you the Holy Spirit and when you do, you're going to be in dude with power. We also know scripture says that when we pray in the spirit, we're actually strengthening our inner man or inner woman. We're strengthening our inner self.

Speaker 1:

And Paul even says it like this I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all. And so there was this benchmark that you know, those guys at the gym you're always like they're always trying to lift much. That was Paul saying I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all. I do this more than you do. And then we look at Paul's life and we can see all of this. How did he do that in a world that was afraid? He was able to do that with his personal relationship with the Holy Spirit, his personal language with God and building up the faith, and so so important. It's actually a secret weapon that we have that if we use more often, I never think we're going to get the heaven and go gosh. I spoke in tongues way too much.

Speaker 2:

Well, I think people have made it so creepy and taboo. But if there's a Hispanic family and they meet another Hispanic family and they begin to speak Spanish in a church resort, none of us are freaking out that they're speaking their language and the community that you can sense between those two, because they have that in common, is so cool and beautiful. Right, it is the exact same. Speaking in tongues it's our heavenly language, the language of heaven, and when we begin to speak it, we begin to come into community with our faith. And also, when we speak in tongues, that's where discernment is birthed. It's like we begin to have the mind of Christ and we interrupt the wrong thoughts and patterns of the world through power of speaking in tongues.

Speaker 2:

So if you see me in my car and I look like I'm speaking a different language, it's not Spanish. I'm praying to the Lord and that is where the power of God comes. That's where my smile comes from when I'm sad, that's where the peace of God comes when I'm feeling disturbed. That's how I've overcome anxiety attacks. It is the greatest tool you can use in your faith is having a prayer language.

Speaker 1:

I love it, babe. So good, and why don't you just? I don't know, maybe we can just pray real quick. You know, being filled with the Holy Spirit is how we get through these times when the world is afraid, and he wants to help you, and so you want to pray, right?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and if you haven't been filled with the Holy Spirit, you don't know what we're talking about. You know? Can I just pray for you right now? You don't need anybody to be there for God to begin to birth, for a language inside of you. So, holy Spirit, right now I just ask you to come and fall on your people, lord. I pray that you give them the gift of their heavenly language, that they can begin to commune with you in even a deeper way.

Speaker 2:

Right now, lord, we just rebuke a spirit of fear. We call it a spirit because that's what it is. It's not a person, it's not a country, it's not a government head, lord, it's a spirit of fear. And right now I thank you. Lord, we have the mind of Christ, we receive the power of faith. Lord, if you are for us, who can be against us? Lord? Just like David, when he looked at that Goliath Lord, there was no intimidation because he knew that you were for him. And, god, I pray against any kind of intimidation right now. And we say to have the mind of Christ. We receive it that if you are for us, who, what, when, what could be against us? God? So we trust you, we ask you to give us the fresh gift of faith. Lord, thank you for the community that you've placed us in. Lord, let us not deny it. Let us run to it. Jesus, for days like these, thank you. You're doing a new thing, you're doing a great thing and you're using us in Jesus' name, amen.

Speaker 1:

Amen, amen, amen Amen.

Speaker 2:

Tell us your stories. We want to hear all about what God's doing.

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