Have you ever been consumed with fear? I certainly have and what I have come to realize, is that only our God can quail the anxiety that comes with this level of fear.
In 2020 I was not only dealing with the fear of Covid like the rest of the world, but I was also dealing with a very scary diagnosis regarding my health. Had it not been for God so graciously leading me to the best of doctors and blessing me with the support of my family and church I probably would not be here today.
As I read my Bible each morning during that year, I started to notice that every day I was being led to a passage of scripture that had the words ” Don’t Be Afraid ” in it. I know that only God could orchestrate the timing of this.
While on this journey, one day I went into a medical facility for some testing. My anxiety level was really high to say the least. As I was about to get into the testing machine, God whispered “Don’t Be Afraid”. It immediately calmed all of my anxieties. It reminded me of a child who needs to hear a soothing word from their parents when they are afraid.
It just so happened that before all of this took place, I was already in the process of reading through the Bible in a year. For years I had made it a habit to read a few scriptures each morning before I started my day, and each night before I went to bed. I had never read completely through the entire Bible cover to cover though. In all of the reading that I have done, I have seen Don’t Be Afraid many times over the years, but not consecutively every day. At least I was not as aware of it as I was during this time. It was as though God revealed it to me when I needed to see it most.
I found it so comforting to come across these passages of scriptures that said “Don’t Be Afraid”.
I am sharing this today to encourage you to just trust God, if you are currently living in the midst of fear. Remember as a child of God we are covered by His love, His blood, His grace and mercy and most importantly His strong protective hand. His timing is perfect, and He always has a plan for our lives that is rooted in kingdom purpose. Only what God allows can ever penetrate and enter the walls of your life. So if something not so good is happening in your life today, Don’t Be Afraid. God can work good from the worst of disasters. Whatever you are going through may just be happening for you instead of to you so again, Don’t Be Afraid!
7 Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Deuteronomy 31:6
6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Psalm 23:4
4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
Psalm 91
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.[a]
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.
8 You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
14 “Because he[b] loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
Psalm 46[a]
1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.[c]
