Fear no more

Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. (Isaiah 41:10 NLT)

Fear and discouragement are two very prominent emotions we must deal with. We may not want to admit we are fearful of some things, but when we take a look at the various emotions wrapped up when we face that 'thing', we might just realize the basis of our emotional upheaval began or ends with fear. It doesn't take long for fear to grip us, paralyzing us, holding us in place with discouragement following closely on its heels. The antidote to fear is faith - faith in something and someone bigger, stronger, and above anything we will ever or could ever fear.

God holds us up when we face things beyond our ability to endure - he won't let discouragement waylay us for very long. He will keep working until we finally realize our source of discouragement isn't that 'thing', it is our belief that the 'thing' is bigger than our God! God has no fear of that 'thing' (whatever or whoever it is), so what is the basis of our fear? It is likely some form of unbelief - we see the object of our fear as a barrier to our success, happiness, or peace because we haven't compared it to the greatness of our God.

God's promise to us is that he will strengthen us, but he will also help us to overcome that 'thing' we fear so much. The 'thing' may be something material such as the fear we find in starting a new job or pursuing a new opportunity. It could be something immaterial such as the fear we face when going into dark spaces or looking out over a vast expanse. We are never more fearful than when we take our eyes off God and focus on the 'thing' more than we do on him. That overwhelming sense of 'it is going to bring pain' or 'it isn't going to let me go' makes us feel there is nothing we can do about the 'thing'.

The word we receive today is critical for us to hear: "He will hold us up with his victorious right hand." He doesn't say he might come to our rescue or might help us face that 'thing'. He promises us that he is with us. When someone is with us, what does that entail? It means we are no longer alone, but it also means we have the strength of someone else at our disposal when ours begins to falter a bit. There is no one stronger or more capable of overcoming that 'thing' than God himself. Who is with us? God himself. Did you hear that? Do you believe it? If you are struggling to believe it, ask him to show himself mighty on your behalf and then stand back and watch what he will do when you finally trust him to do it. You might just find the basis of your fear shattered before your eyes. Just sayin!