When The Apprehensions Come

I want to write a little more on fear. Fear is a real emotion, but as the acronym teaches fear is false evidence appearing real. Yesterday I wrote we cannot be worried about what man will do to us. Our eyes must forever be on God:

    “I called on the Lord in distress; the Lord answered me and set me in a broad place. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” (Psalm 118:5-6)

The first half of verse 6 in the psalm above says, “The Lord is on my side; I will not fear.” We do well to remember that. If we are going to “name it and claim it” about anything of God, it should be the Lord is on my side; I will not fear. That is not a false confidence in myself or even man. It is confidence in God. David’s confidence in God allowed him to write:

    “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.” (Psalm 3:5-6)

It is confidence in God that allowed Habakkuk to sing:

    “Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls—yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills.” (Habakkuk 3:17-19)

Some are predicting things will get much worse in America before they get better. I think that is a real possibility. America has experienced great abundance and never really experienced real Christian persecution. If hard times do come, will we wither or withstand the onslaught? The way we withstand is to remember God’s promises. Oswald Chambers writes:

    My say-so is to be built on God’s say-so. God says – “I will never leave you,” then I can with good courage say – “The Lord is on my side, I will not fear – ” I will not be haunted by apprehension. This does not mean that I will not be tempted to fear, but I will remember God’s say-so. I will be full of courage, like a child “bucking himself up” to reach the standard his father wants. Faith in many a one falters when the apprehensions come, they forget the meaning of God’s say-so, forget to take a deep breath spiritually. The only way to get the dread taken out of us is to listen to God’s say-so.

When was the last time you took “a deep breath spiritually” when the apprehensions came? It is not a natural response, it must be a trained spiritual response. It comes through discipleship, reading God’s Word, praying without ceasing, and walking in fellowship with the Lord continually.

I want to be full of courage! For that to happen, I must be steeled by fearlessness.

More on that next time…

In Christ
Dave
Ps. 37:4

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    Copyright © 2013 David Jeffers

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