What are you afraid of?
SHINE Reading Plan: Go here.
Psalm 91
Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.a
2I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
3Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.
9If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
11For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
12they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”
This world is falling apart at the seams. We knew this would happen, it says so in many books of our Bible. Ezekiel, Daniel, Matthew, Revelation...just to name a few. Yet, we act surprised when we see disturbing things on the news and in or twitter & Facebook newsfeeds.
When we hear devastating news, we shudder, we worry, we grip our lives with both hands and try really hard to protect ourselves and our loved ones.
All the muscles in the world cannot hold tight enough to the plans and purposes of God. We must let go, and relinquish our trust and faith to God.
Easier said than done, right?
Fear can grip even the most faithful heart and rip it to shreds in five seconds flat.
The irony of fear is that it is false. It is a tactic of the enemy to divert us from God's Truth and God's reality.
Fear takes our eyes off of God.
Fear causes us to hold tighter to the things of this world instead of releasing them to God.
Fear paralyzes our actions so that we are not able to fulfill God's purposes and plans for us.
Fear makes us question the sovereignty and goodness of God.
Fear and I have had many battle rounds. I have been knocked out cold in the ring by fear more times than I care to remember.
Until one day, I read Psalm 91 in the Bible. The first time I read it I cried. I cried because I wanted to believe it was true. I cried because as much as I wanted it to be true, I wasn't sure it was.
How can God promise me this? I look around and see such devastation and sorrow and pain....how can God assure me that I will be unharmed?
Take a look at one of the last lines of this Psalm: "He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation."
God never says we won't face trouble, He says "I will be with him in trouble."
God then goes on to say that "He will deliver him and honor him."
And further.."With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation."
So, what about those whose lives have been cut short? Great and godly men and women of God? We have to remember to keep things in God's perspective. Eternity is His perspective. We tend to look at life in the temporal. These men and women [and all believers] will have eternity--long life in which they will be satisfied with His salvation. Wow!
If we think this life is IT for us, we need to re-evaluate our faith. This life is only a stepping stone into our life with Christ. The decisions we make today will affect our future in heaven. Of this we can be sure.
When we choose to live in fear, we are choosing to deny God's Word and His Truth. We are choosing to believe what our eyes see instead of what our faith knows. "We are to live by faith, and not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7
Prayer is the knockout for fear. Prayer keeps the enemy of fear away and will continue to as long as it's being spoken from our lips.
Prayer combined with God's Word is the formula for defeat. Fear does not stand a chance with this deadly duo.
I have a precious friend. She has a special needs child. Every time I look into the eyes of this child I see the plans and purposes of God. I envision what he will be like in Heaven. I envision him sitting at the feet of Christ praising God all the days of his eternal life. I envision his body being free from physical disabilities. I can just see him running around God's Kingdom clothed in white linen declaring the glory of God! What a sight that will be! I can hardly wait!!
I know this to be true, because God's Word tells us that His Ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts .[Isaiah 55:8-9] He has a purpose and a plan even in the things we cannot understand. [Romans 8:28]
"For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-- all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.…" Colossians 1:17
So, what do we do now?
In our lives at this very moment--sipping our coffee, scrolling our news feed--- what are we to do?
- Get to know God in His Word. We cannot trust someone we do not know. Spend time every single day getting to know God. You will be amazed at what He shows you!
- Pray. Never stop praying.
- Defeat fear with Truth. Memorize scripture. If you don't have a good memory [I can relate], write scripture down on notecards and keep it with you at all times. Get it out and repeat it out loud when fear comes.
I know I sound like a broke record most days. I apologize for this. Love me anyway. I am just so very passionate about God's Word and us knowing it, believing it, and living it. Our very lives and the lives of others desperately need the Power of His Word! We cannot keep our mouths shut any longer if we truly love others!
Love sheds light!
Love points the way to Christ!
Love speaks instead of staying silent!
Instead of living a life of fear, let's choose today to live a life of FAITH.
....and SHOUT IT OUT to a hurting world!
grabbing my megaphone,
jill
