In this day and age where there is soooooo much evil and bad going on in the world and possibly in your own life as well, it may be hard for some of us who are in recovery to remember not to fear. The following devotional touches on this topic.
For some of us our childhood may have been full of fear and confusion. Resulting in our later years to misunderstand God's love. I know this all too well.
But, if some how we can come to the realization when God says not to fear in His Word, He is is saying it from a loving perspective. Even though some of us may not know God's love fully, or even feel His love, I being one, still, I come by faith, although hard at times, that He is a loving God and is not out to get me.
Do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10
Many of us struggle with fear. It is a very uncomfortable emotion. We would be happy to be rid of it. It causes our hearts to race, our focus of attention to narrow, and terrible possibilities to enter our minds. We wish we could banish fear from our hearts by sheer will power. We wish we could simply stop feeling afraid. Unfortunately fear is not dismissed so easily.
There is something about texts such as this one that leave us very uncomfortable. The words "do not fear" seem like a simple command. God says "do not fear". It looks like a simple imperative. Our job is simply to obey. But, we cannot seem to obey. No matter how hard we try not to be afraid, we cannot seem to make our fears go away.
The key to understanding texts of this kind is to see that when God says 'do not fear', it is not a simple imperative from an authority figure. The words "do not fear" are spoken as words of comfort. And they are followed by a specific promise of God's presence with us.
A loving parent speaks to a child who awakens from a nightmare with words such as, "Don't be afraid. I'm here with you. You are safe." This is not a rejection of the child's fears. It is not an instruction to do the impossible. It is, rather, a promise of protection. If a parent says only "Don't be afraid," then the child learns that the parent doesn't understand and the child feels unprotected. But if the parent says "Don't be afraid, I'm here with you," the child's needs are validated and the child is comforted by the parent's protection.
God comforts us in the way a loving parent comforts a frightened child. God says to us, "I know that you are afraid; but I also want you to know that I am here with you. I will not leave you. I will give you strength. I will give you help. I will hold you by the hand so that you will not fall".
You know, God,
how often I am afraid.
And you know the soil in which these fears have grown.
And you know how I have struggled to be free from fear.
Help me to draw courage today from your presence.
Be with me.
Give me strength.
Help me.
Uphold me with your hand.
Still my fears, God of all Comfort.
Still my fears with your powerful love.
Amen.
Copyright Dale and Juanita Ryan
Powerful prayer.
ReplyDeleteJBR wonderful reminder for all of us. The world isn't gonna get any better. Having God as our protector and comforter is our everlasting sustainment in this crazy world of unsettleness. God Bless.
ReplyDeleteHi JBR,
ReplyDeleteThis made me think about courage and what it takes to do fearful things. From what I have learned and read a person of courage is still fearful yet they do not let that fear stop or overrule them from doing what they need to do.
I think God understands that we are fearful yet when we hold anything above God then that is our idol and we are to have no idols and worship God only.
Blessings hon, good devotional.
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Trust can be so hard.
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome JBR! We all have hard time with trusting Daddy and knowing He loves us. As soon as we are stricken with fear, He is ready to comfort us in the mist.
ReplyDeleteSome moments I get so stricken with fear, even by the littlest things. But thank Daddy He comes to comfort me immediately and straightens up my back knowing He is the Almighty and is ready for battle!
Hugs and blessings my dear ♥
Thank you for this wise post. I just read that verse from Isaiah this morning. Fear has been a topic that the Lord has been giving me strength to deal with, and ultimately to overcome.
ReplyDeleteIt is a step I need to take in order to recover from the things that happened in the past.
~God is good, and desires us to be healthy and whole...as we are complete in Christ.
~Blessings and love to you~
Thanks for sharing as always, and thank you for checking on me :)
ReplyDeleteIsn't it wonderful that He is there to comfort and protect us! Reassuring post, Grace. :)
ReplyDeleteI tend to have a lot of fears. it is reassuring to think that God is always with me to help me and he wants the best for me so I have no reason to fear.
ReplyDeleteI love this post. You helped me to understand what God meant when He said not to be afraid. This is a wonderful and encouraging post. God Bless you for sharing. I will try to remember that "Do not fear.." are words of comfort and a promise that God will be there with us, even in the midst of out fears. He is the only one who can rid us of fear, we cannot do it alone. What is impossible for me, is possible for Him. Praise God!!
ReplyDeleteAlso, I love that picture :-)
ReplyDeleteThat was a beautiful explanation of that scripture!
ReplyDelete