You may be one of those people who say they are not afraid of anything. I am not one of those people. As a little girl, I was afraid of the dark and still don’t like it. I was scared of what might be in the darkness. Today, our world is full of fear. The past pandemic, politics, and wars have caused great fear and division in all walks of life. We have a great division in our country. According to II Timothy 1:7, our fears are a tactic Satan uses on us to cause us to look inward instead of upward. God gives us a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind. This mind thinks clearly because it is under the right influence. However, if Satan can keep our focus on our fears, we will be of no value to the kingdom. So, how do we handle our fears?
II Timothy 1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
David, the great warrior who killed Goliath, gave us a solution that is still valid today. In Psalm 56, he is running from Saul, who is out to kill David. He finds rest and a place to gather his men in Ziglag. The Philistines granted David refuge. To me, this is a strange refuge because David was responsible for killing the Philistine warrior Goliath. Nevertheless, it is in this refuge that he pens these words: ” What time I am afraid I will trust in thee.”
Psalm 56:3 “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Fear in itself is not a bad thing. Fear can make us cautious. Fear keeps us from feeling invincible and doing some dumb things. Fear can act as a shield from danger by causing us to seek protection. David again instructs us where we can find that protection. He runs to God. In Psalm 56:4, David praises God’s word. He finds great comfort in knowing God is in control, and he puts his trust in God. Fear can swallow us up when we come to the realization that we have no power of our own to protect ourselves from impending dangers. It is then that we lay our fears at the feet of Jesus for our comfort and protection. Jesus gave His life so that those who put their trust in Him would not have to fear death, something we will all face but something we don’t have to fear.
Psalm 56:4 “In God, I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.”
When we handle our fears by placing our trust in God, our fears can be turned into praise. In Psalm 34:3-4, David magnifies the Lord and exalts His name. He praises God because God heard his prayers and delivered him from all his fears. This recipe for handling concerns will bring great comfort to our souls. We trust God to handle things, and it removes the weight of worry from our lives. We don’t feel the responsibility for things that are not in our realm of control. There is great freedom in trusting God to deliver us and protect us. According to Romans 8:28-29, we know that He is working things out for our good. If there are bad things that happen, God will use them to conform us to the image of Jesus. That is what is best for us. Trusting God allows us to step back and see the big picture of life. It allows us to see His hand at work, and it diminishes our fears.
Psalm 34:3-4 “O magnify the LORD with me and let us exalt his name together. I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”
Romans 8:28-29 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.”
