Do Not Be Afraid

 Do Not Be Afraid

“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help the; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Isaiah 41: 10

Sometimes we humans make things complex, but God has simplified faith for us. We must choose to use our faith and believe His word and act upon it or not to believe it. That is our choice.

Why did God tell us to fear not? Because He is with us. Imagine, God is with you and me. Why? So, we will not be fearful. That seems clear and simple, doesn’t it? Fear not, because I your God am with you.

But He did not stop there. He went on to say, “Be not dismayed.” What does that word dismayed mean? It means disappointed, unhappy. A feeling of alarm, fear, or serious disappointment. God does not want us to let our courage breakdown. Why? Because He is our God. We do not need to be in stress, or lose courage, He says, “I am your God.” And let me tell you He is a big God. There is nothing impossible for Him. He can do anything.

Have you ever been fearful. . . I mean downright scared. I remember when I was a kid, we had a two-story house, and the sun was setting. I had to go downstairs to get something for my mother. Now this is during the time when we did not have air conditioning, so we kept the windows up and even our doors unlocked. There was still just enough light outside with the setting sun that I did not need to turn on a lamp.

As I walked past the windows I saw out of the corner of my eye, something move. I looked, and there was a man standing at the window. He said something, but it scared me so much, I took off running upstairs, screaming, and yelling for help. (Remember I was a kid.)

Well, they checked it out, but of course he was gone. (I guess I scared him with my screaming and yelling.) I remember that to this day, and I am eighty years old. When I walk by a window I automatically look at the window. Silly? Maybe. But what happened that day is etched in my memory.

As a child, I was not thinking God’s words, “Fear not.” My adrenalin was pumping faster than my legs were running. God had given me faith, but I did not stop and use my faith. I let fear take over and rule my thoughts, emotions, and my heart.

Do we still do that today?

Prayer:

Lord, I confess there are times when I do not obey you, and I allow fear to rule in my heart and mind. Forgive me. Help me. Help me to stand strong in my faith and rebuke fear when it raises its ugly head. Help me to remember that fear comes from the enemy to steal the peace you have given me. Amen

 

This is from an excerpt in my book Listen Close.