When I Am Afraid…
written by Chris Baker
Have you ever been in a scary situation? What causes you to be afraid? Most often, it is the unknowns. Will I make it out of this accident alive, will I escape these people who wish to do me harm, will I beat this disease and so forth? These situations are scary because we do not know the outcome. Is it ok to be scared, nervous, anxious and so on? What are we to do with these emotions? Let’s take a look at Psalm 56 and see what David suggests.
Take a moment and read Psalm 56 by clicking here. David is currently being pursued by King Saul. Saul is determined to capture and kill David. While fleeing from Saul, David has just been captured by the Philistines in Gath. David knows that he is in trouble when the Philistines recognize who he is. The servants, of the Philistine King Achish, said in 1 Samuel 21:11, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Isn’t he the one they sing about in their dances: “‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands’” (NIV)? David is being pursued by King Saul, who wishes to kill him, and is now held captive by King Achish. David is afraid because he has no idea how this will play out. We know, by reading ahead in 1 Samuel 21, that David pretends to be insane and is released from the Philistines. However, David does not know this at the time.
David writes this Psalm while under Philistine captivity. David is obviously fearful, but what does he do with his fear? David chooses to trust God! He admits that he is scared and chooses to trust God. Then he says, in God I trust and will not be afraid. Do you see what He did there? He owns that fact that he is afraid but recognizes there is no need to be afraid because He trusts in the living God! David says, what’s the worst thing that could happen to me? What can these mere mortals do to me when I serve the eternal God. David is secure in his future because his salvation is in the Lord. Jesus says in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die” (NIV).
Jesus has provided a way for us to be secure in our future inheritance. It does not matter what man, or the enemy, does to you because they cannot touch your inheritance. Peter says this inheritance is your salvation, which is kept in heaven for you (1Peter 1:3-9). Place whatever you are facing in the context of this reality. Contrast everything in life with your eternal and unfading inheritance!
Whether persecution, disease, famine, bankruptcy, failing health, fill in the blank, it cannot compare to the eternal inheritance which is kept in heaven for you. If your faith and salvation is in Jesus Christ, then what is there to be afraid of? What can this world do to you if your future is secure in Christ Jesus? Do you know Jesus today? Is your salvation found in Him and Him alone? If so, then what do you really have to fear?
“When I am afraid, I will trust in you…in God I trust; [therefore] I will not be afraid” (Psalm 56:3-4).
Please click here, to learn more about beginning a relationship with Jesus.
The Barnabas Corner 