Psalm 27:1-6 The Lord is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and fall Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident. The one thing I ask of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple. For he will conceal me there when troubles come; he will hide me in his sanctuary. He will place me out of reach on a high rock. Then I will hold my head high above my enemies who surround me. At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy, singing and praising the Lord with music.
I love to read through the Psalms. David had a powerful way with words. Psalm 27 is a great Psalm to read when we are feeling fearful or afraid. David had many opportunities to be fearful. As a young teen, he cared for the family sheep and fought off wild animals. As he grew a little older, he took on the giant, Goliath, with a slingshot and stones. Later, he dealt with the wrath of King Saul. He fought many battles in his lifetime. I’m sure that he felt the darkness of fear creep in a time or two, but this Psalm gives us great insight of how David handled his fear. He recognized that God was his light and salvation, and he realized that God was enough. He didn’t have any reason to be fearful of anyone or anything because God was with him.
We all face fear in our lives. We face our own kind of giants on a daily basis. Some of the giants are much larger than Goliath. It seems that every morning we awake to new giants, new battles, and new heartaches. We may feel overwhelmed. We may not know how to approach these difficult life challenges. We may feel that we can’t stand up to the difficult circumstance that we are facing, BUT we can! We can stand up to every challenge and difficult situation we face just as David did. We too can be delivered from fear by focusing and depending on the Lord.
David knew that he could not stand up to the difficulties alone. He proclaimed that God was his light and salvation, and in doing so, he understood that God grants the right perspective for life. If we look at life’s challenges through our own clouded lenses, we can not see clearly. We allow the worries and fears to overshadow our perspective. But if we learn to lean on God and rely on Him through every situation, the clouds slowly fade away, and we begin to see life through God’s glorious perspective.
David said, “Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident.” Confident in what? He knew where his strength came from. He knew who fought his battles for him. He did not puff up with pride when he fought Goliath. Do you recall what he told Goliath as he stood before him? “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the Lord will conquer you.” (I Samuel 17:45-46) He didn’t proclaim that he would defeat Goliath himself. he informed Goliath that the Lord would conquer him. The Lord will fight our battles too if only we would believe in Him. We have nothing to fear.
God will provide whatever is needed to meet every circumstance and challenge that we face. He only asks that we live for Him and trust in Him. When we learn to place our focus on Christ rather than on our fears, He will give us the strength we need, and He will take away our fears. Today, give it to God. Get up, get dressed, and put on the full armor of God, and know that He is with you today and always. Let go, and let God! No fear! He is here!
Inspirations from the Funny Farm 