You know, with all this talk of the Virus, the economy, the potential recession worldwide, fear is invading our minds.  As you move about you can almost touch fear in the eyes of people, in their hurried behavior and in their talk.  People are afraid of getting sick, infecting their loved ones and potentially dying.  All this press does not help the situation either, it is all the news at the moment and there is nothing else to focus on.

For those with no anchor of hope to their lives, fear is a storm that no one anticipated and none can see the end of. 

I have previously shared how I perceive fear as a bully, in ‘Bully of Fear,’ and talked about the first step in fighting back:  Recognize fear in your life and start working against him, by first going to seek the Lord’s face.

God does not want us to operate in fear, His desire for us is to live with a spirit of “power, love and self discipline.” (2 Tim 1:7).

Today I would like to share David’s strategy in dealing with fear as seen in Psalm 27.  David is overwhelmed by fear and recognised it in his heart.  He knows how to deal with it. So he asks: ‘Why do I have fear, why am I afraid?”fearprison

The Lord is my light and my salvation –
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life –
of whom shall I be afraid?

He then proceeds to describe the following strategy for fear:

  1. He comes to the Lord in prayer.  He “asks from the Lord…” (verse 4).  Very often we are slow to move into prayer, often trying our own strategies to deal with fear, usually a “fight” or “flight” response.  But our first strategy when confronted with fear should always be to start praying.  When you wake up afraid, when you cannot sleep, when you feel fear press on your chest, start to pray.
  2. He renews his vision of the Lord.  He “dwells in the house of the Lord” (verse 4) and “gazes on his beauty.”  He sees again the heart and Person of God, David starts to see things from God’s perspective.  When we are afraid we need to spend time in God’s presence until He becomes GOD ALMIGHTY in our hearts again.  Until we are reminded of WHO He is and that He is faithful.
  3. He meditates on the Word of God.  He has spent time “in his temple” (verse 4), spending time considering the truth.  Making a decision based on truth in verse 3, that “my heart will not fear,” that despite everything, He will trust God.  So long does he meditate on this that he concludes in verse 13:

I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

  1. He chooses to trust in God’s protection.  Deciding that on the “day of trouble” (verse 5), he will trust that God will “keep me safe”; “hide me”; “set me high upon a rock” and my head will be “above the enemies.” (verse 6).
  2. Through it all, he will worship God moment by moment.  He will “sing and make music to the Lord” (verse 6) in his heart.  Worshiping to remind himself of the faithfulness and goodness of God, to discipline his mind away from worry to focus of the One who is to be praised.  There is value in listening to praise and worship music, singing to the Lord and loving Him with the music of your heart.
  3. He will choose to wait for Him and rest in Him.  He chooses to believe and then to wait until He sees it.  He expresses how determined he is to wait in verse 14:

Wwait for Lordait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

But have a look at the Amplified Bible’s version of this same verse to see David’s resolve:

“Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.”

 

Father, life is scary in this world I am living in, but I choose not to shrink back in fear.  I will go forward with You, trusting You in amongst it all, knowing that you will work it out and there will be many a day when I see your goodness while I am still here on earth.  For now I choose to seek your face, to dwell in your presence, to remind myself of Who you are until I get the confidence again to move out.  Only here in your presence will I find courage to have a strong heart and to endure and then shake off fear.

Meditate on Isaiah 51:12-16 written for yourself:

Even I, I AM the one who comforts you (put your own name in here).

Who are you that you fear mortal men, the sons of men who are but grass – so much so that you forget the Lord, who is your Maker…that you live in constant terror every day fearing the wrath of the oppressor who is bent on destruction.

I AM the Lord your God.

I AM the God ALL-mighty.

I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand – ME – who sets everything in place; who lays ALL foundations and who says: “You are MINE.”

Be blessed my friend, stay safe, stay healthy and do not let fear steal your peace in this season of our lives.

Keep praying.

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