Lenten Reader | Day 12

Whom Shall I Fear?

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?

One thing I ask from the Lord,
 this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
  all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
 and to seek him in his temple.
For in the day of trouble
 he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
 and set me high upon a rock.

- Psalm 27:1,4-5
Are you wrestling with fear? Our enemy wants to damage our relationship with God using fear. Fear is an emotion caused by danger, evil, pain, or deep concern. Fear may be real or imagined, present or from the past. Another type of fear is reverential awe such as the fear of God or someone highly respected.

When I was in high school, I wrestled on the varsity team. I don't know if any of my opponents feared me, but they should have. LOL! What I do know is that I never had fear going onto the mat. I was confident that nothing would stop me from reaching my goal to win.

Fear is mentioned many times in the Bible. God tells us not fear because He is with us. Often, when fear creeps into our lives, we can feel hopeless and defeated. Fear can cripple or us damage our relationships with people and God. Today, as we look at our society, we see fear all around us. It is brought on because of health, finances, crime, jobs, and family problems. Sometimes, even just the fear of failure can stop us in our tracks. Governments use fear to control, advertisers use fear to sell products, and the media uses fear for ratings. Fear is everywhere! But we have a weapon – our savior Jesus Christ, the risen one.

Just like David, Daniel, or the three in the furnace, we can overcome fear. We can weather the storm, defeat the wicked, and our enemies will fall. The battle is ours to win. We will be safe in the loving arms of our savior who is a fortress that cannot be razed. Our Lord will set you high upon a rock above all your fears. You can believe that when our God is in the fight we will always be victorious, and he will vanquish fear every time.

Think upon the statement David is proclaiming in today's Scripture, and ask yourself, “Is the Lord my light and is the Lord my salvation?” Be confident in God's promise to you today for the joy of the Lord is our strength. Fear has no home and joy is present.

- Richard Coppel
Prayer
Father, hide me in shelter of your sacred tent and set me high upon a rock when I am afraid. Banish fear from my heart because you have overcome fear.

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