Don't Be Afraid

 

God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid. Isaiah 12:2

Frightening circumstances are less troublesome if we trust the hands that control them. If our world and our lives were governed by a thoughtless and indifferent force, we would have good reason to fear.

BUT the hands that control the universe - God’s hands - are wise and compassionate. We can trust them in spite of our circumstances and not be afraid.

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. Behold, all who are incensed against you shall be put to shame and confounded; those who strive against you shall be as nothing and shall perish. You shall seek those who contend with you, but you shall not find them; those who war against you shall be as nothing at all. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, ‘Fear not, I am the one who helps you.’ Isaiah 41:10-13

FEAR NOT … Jesus is holding YOUR hand.

We give so much of our strength and energy to being fearful and worrying about things ... when we should be resting in God's peace knowing that He WILL come through for us. Your current condition does not define God's ultimate intention. Through fire and flood, He is with you and will bring you through. So QUIT fearing and worrying, He has ALREADY taken care of it.

My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. Isaiah 32:18

God is the One in control … so we have NOTHING to fear.

Father, thank You that no harm will come near us or our dwelling. Guard, protect, lead and guide us. Take care of all our needs and all our loved ones as we lay down our worries and fears. I pray for peace in our mind/thoughts/spirit. Quieten the voice of the enemy. Comfort us with the presence of Your supportive hand. I curse worries and fears that try to rob us of our sleep. I pray perfect peace over us when we lay our heads down at night. Bless us, favor us and move on our behalf even as we sleep. I plead the Blood of Jesus over us. In Jesus’ name, amen.



see also: Christ is My Victory (Psalm 91 to pray)

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

 

 

 

Let the Lord's people show Him reverence,

for those who honor Him will have all they

 need. Those who trust in the Lord will never

lack any good thing.

Psalm 34:9,10

Fear God. That's a biblical concept that's often misunderstood. It doesn't mean that we should be afraid of God. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't develop a personal relationship with the Lord. But it does mean that we should respect Him, reverence Him, and be infinitely more concerned with fulfilling the Law of God than just doing whatever we want to do or trying to please others.

Happy are those who respect the Lord and obey Him. You will enjoy what you work for, and you will be blessed with good things. Psalm 128:1,2

If we live with a reverence and respect for the Lord, the biblical fear of the Lord, then we don't have to be afraid of anything. Sometimes, we just need to be quiet and listen. It's usually in the stillness that the Holy Spirit speaks words of comfort and direction. Fear the Lord and don't be afraid of anything.

The Bible says, "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, 'My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!'" (Psalm 91:1-3,7).

Somehow being in the Lord's presence just makes everything okay. When you're in the presence of the Lord, you have NOTHING to fear. The power of the presence of God will take away all despair and doubt as you fellowship with Him.

You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand. Psalm 16:11

It doesn't matter if you're going through the flood or the fire, because you know God is with you. As long as you feel His arms around you, everything's all right.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Psalms 23:4

Respect your Father.

Father, help us to respect and revere You. Help us to not be afraid. Bless our lives with all that we need. In Jesus' name, amen.

You're Surrounded

 
 

The Lord your God is going with you.

He will fight for you against your enemies,

and He will give you victory.

Deuteronomy 20:4

 
 
 
 
 
 
Are you overwhelmed by the attacks of the enemy? Feel like you’re all alone? Feeling afraid?
 
We live in a fallen world. There's evil on every side. There's sickness, temptation and sorrow. Tragedy and loss sometimes strikes. Problems with personal relationships, economic difficulties, personal failures.  

 

What shall we do? The answer is found in faith.

God is greater than ANY circumstance or emergency we might find ourselves in. He won't be caught off guard by it. He is well able to help you overcome. Because if He's for you, NO ONE can be against you (Romans 8:31). NEVER run from your enemy. It only delays promotion. Know that when an enemy shows up - promotion is being offered.

Fear not that which tries to torment, for those that are with us, to protect us, are more than those that are against us, to destroy us - angels are unspeakably more numerous - God infinitely more powerful. When we are magnifying the causes of our fear we ought to possess ourselves with clear, and great, and high thoughts of God and the invisible world.


 

 

'Don't be afraid,' the

prophet answered.

'Those who are with us are

more than

those who are with them.'

2 Kings 6:16

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Don't panic. Don't be afraid. Don’t look at the enemies that may be surrounding you, instead focus on Jesus and the help that is yours as a child of God. There's more going on than just what you see. Unseen by the physical senses, God is there to support, protect and encourage. Be unmoved.

God gives peace AND rest.

The Lord gave them peace and rest ALL AROUND, just as He had promised. Not one of their enemies opposed them - He placed all of them under their control. Joshua 21:44
 
 


Even seemingly surrounded and overwhelmed, there’s STILL more with us than be with them. Jesus is standing beside you -- you ARE NOT alone today. He’s ALWAYS with you.
 
 
 
 

God is greater than any enemy. Period.

Father, I pray that You help us to feel Your presence with us instead of fear when seemingly surrounded by the enemy. Give us protection on every side, build and be a protective fortress around us with Your presence. Open our spiritual eyes to see You and the angels of protection You have around us. I bind the attacks of the enemy trying to come against us and our loved ones and cast them to the pits of hell. Lord, give us peace and rest on EVERY side. In Jesus’ mighty name, amen.
 
 
 
see also: 2 Kings 6:8-23
             Romans 8:31-38
    
 

 

God's our Shield

Many are saying of me, 'God will not deliver him.' But You are a shield around me, O Lord; You bestow glory on me and lift up my head. Psalm 3:2-3






We receive messages about ourselves from the important people in our lives. We internalize these messages and carry them with us, repeating them to ourselves as if they were gospel truth. When the messages are shaming messages then the internal chorus chants 'You are not lovable. You are beyond repair. Even God cannot help you.'

This chorus is a chorus of lies. The psalmist rejects these lies. And we need to begin to reject these lies as well.

The Lord is a 'shield around me', the psalmist says. A shield protects. It comes between the blows of an enemy and a person's vulnerable places. Most shields are small and can only protect a limited area from attack. But the shield which the Lord provides completely surrounds us. We can let this shield protect us from these attacking messages.

The psalmist also says that the Lord 'bestows glory on me and lifts up my head'. Heavy burdens of shame, neglect and abuse have bowed our heads. The Lord listens, pays attention and cares about us. God's love counters the voices of our internal shame-chorus so that we can lift our heads. God replaces our shame with glory. It is a picture of a ragged, neglected child whose head is bowed and shoulders are bent. A king sees the child and goes to him. The king gently lifts the child's chin until his eyes meet his own smiling eyes. He asks the child to come home and live as royalty with him. The child is loved, honored, protected. You are the child. God lifts your head and bestows glory.

Father, I pray that You help me to stop listening to lies about You. Help me to stop listening to lies about me. Be a shield around me. Bestow glory. Lift up my head. In Jesus' name, amen.

Christ is My Victory

Psalm 91
from The Message Bible






You who sit down in the High God's presence,
spend the night in Shaddai's shadow,
Say this: 'God You're my refuge.
I trust in you and I'm safe!'

That's right—He rescues you from hidden traps,
shields you from deadly hazards.
His huge outstretched arms protect you—
under them you're perfectly safe;
His arms fend off all harm.
Fear nothing—not wild wolves in the night,
not flying arrows in the day,
Not disease that prowls through the darkness,
not disaster that erupts at high noon.
Even though others succumb all around,
drop like flies right and left,
no harm will even graze you.
You'll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance,
watch the wicked turn into corpses.
Yes, because God's your refuge,
the High God your very own home,
Evil can't get close to you,
harm can't get through the door.
He ordered His angels
to guard you wherever you go.
If you stumble, they'll catch you;
their job is to keep you from falling.
You'll walk unharmed among lions and snakes,
and kick young lions and serpents from the path.

'If you'll hold on to me for dear life,' says God,
'I'll get you out of any trouble.
I'll give you the best of care
if you'll only get to know and trust Me.
Call Me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times;
I'll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I'll give you a long life,
give you a long drink of salvation!'