The Greek word for crisis means “a turning point of decision.”

The truth is, having a crisis means you are at a turning point of decision making. And to simplify the decision, you have two…

1. The path of Fear

2. The path of Faith

Whenever you are facing a crisis there are only two roads you can take. They both lead to completely different destinations, and no, you cannot travel down both roads simultaneously. It is impossible to have faith and fear leading to the same destination point. By definition alone faith is the complete opposite of fear, and fear the complete antithesis of faith. To say that, “I trust God, but just have some fears…” is basically to say, “I am NOT trusting God.” Ouch, that hurt, probably me more than you, but never-the-less we all need to hear this. Both fear and faith cannot produce the same result. Jesus addressed this…

Matthew 12:33-37 (NKJV)

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. 34 Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. 36 But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. 37 For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Every fear you allow into your mind subtracts your faith. Literally, every time we allow worry and faithlessness in, it removes faith. The less faith you have, the weaker you become in crisis times. Crisis is simply an opportunity to reveal what is inside of us. For every crisis we deal with, we have to decide what road we are going to take. I am reminded of what author Robert Frost penned in his famous poem The Road Not Taken…

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, 
And sorry I could not travel both 
And be one traveler, long I stood 
And looked down one as far as I could 
To where it bent in the undergrowth; 

Then took the other, as just as fair, 
And having perhaps the better claim, 
Because it was grassy and wanted wear; 
Though as for that the passing there 
Had worn them really about the same, 

And both that morning equally lay 
In leaves no step had trodden black. 
Oh, I kept the first for another day! 
Yet knowing how way leads on to way, 
I doubted if I should ever come back. 

I shall be telling this with a sigh 
Somewhere ages and ages hence: 
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 
I took the one less traveled by, 
And that has made all the difference.

What will make the difference in your crisis situation is the decision you make in the midst of it. You only get a first response once, kind of like a first impression. Make sure you always are guided by faith and not fear. Fear is a limiter and a thief. It tries to steal the destiny and miracles that God has intended for you. Don’t allow fear to cause you to take the easy road. Allow faith to give you a crisis intervention and take the road less traveled!

Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV)

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.