One of the most famous sayings from the World War II era was, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." You will hear those words used quite often when uncertain times come upon you or your family, or when deeply troubling circumstances have entered our lives.
There is more to those words than just a catchy slogan. There is a purpose behind them. Sometimes when we are afraid, and quite possibly most of the time when fear strikes us, we become so frightened we are afraid to do anything. We become frozen in time because we are not quite sure how to approach a particular problem. It is usually about this time we don't even seek counsel. So when the words of this phrase come to our mind, we must know we can't be so fearful we don't do anything.
The devil wants us to be afraid. He brings things into our lives hoping to paralyze us from being able to do what we know is the right thing to do. The right thing is always seeking God regardless of the situation. The psalmist said, "I sought the Lord, and He answered me, And delivered me from all my fears (34:4). Now we know how to overcome fear. We do so by seeking the Lord's counsel and waiting for Him to guide us to a solution.
It is interesting to note the psalmist began this psalm by praising the Lord and telling his brethren to magnify the Lord with him, so that they might exalt His name together. Have you ever been so happy you needed to share your joy with someone? What is more joyful than knowing the Lord is there hearing your prayers and answering them?
The 34th Psalm begins by telling us the Lord is worthy to be praised. The remainder of the psalm tells us why. Those who fear the Lord will be rescued by Him. The fear of verse 7 is a reverential fear that acknowledges the awesome power of our God, not a fear borne out of anxiety or sense of danger. It is the sense of danger that causes us to do nothing when fear grips us, but having a confidence in our God that He is able to deliver should dispel that fear.
No one will live a life free from trials and temptation. But we do have an avenue of escape. We should daily be echoing the words of the psalmist as we encourage our brothers and sisters today to come and exalt the name of God with us, so we may share our joy with one another because of His great love for us. It is then that our boast will be only in the Lord as we magnify His name.
As we do this we will grow stronger in our faith and love for God. For we are continually living in the knowledge we truly have nothing to fear. Rodger
There is more to those words than just a catchy slogan. There is a purpose behind them. Sometimes when we are afraid, and quite possibly most of the time when fear strikes us, we become so frightened we are afraid to do anything. We become frozen in time because we are not quite sure how to approach a particular problem. It is usually about this time we don't even seek counsel. So when the words of this phrase come to our mind, we must know we can't be so fearful we don't do anything.
The devil wants us to be afraid. He brings things into our lives hoping to paralyze us from being able to do what we know is the right thing to do. The right thing is always seeking God regardless of the situation. The psalmist said, "I sought the Lord, and He answered me, And delivered me from all my fears (34:4). Now we know how to overcome fear. We do so by seeking the Lord's counsel and waiting for Him to guide us to a solution.
It is interesting to note the psalmist began this psalm by praising the Lord and telling his brethren to magnify the Lord with him, so that they might exalt His name together. Have you ever been so happy you needed to share your joy with someone? What is more joyful than knowing the Lord is there hearing your prayers and answering them?
The 34th Psalm begins by telling us the Lord is worthy to be praised. The remainder of the psalm tells us why. Those who fear the Lord will be rescued by Him. The fear of verse 7 is a reverential fear that acknowledges the awesome power of our God, not a fear borne out of anxiety or sense of danger. It is the sense of danger that causes us to do nothing when fear grips us, but having a confidence in our God that He is able to deliver should dispel that fear.
No one will live a life free from trials and temptation. But we do have an avenue of escape. We should daily be echoing the words of the psalmist as we encourage our brothers and sisters today to come and exalt the name of God with us, so we may share our joy with one another because of His great love for us. It is then that our boast will be only in the Lord as we magnify His name.
As we do this we will grow stronger in our faith and love for God. For we are continually living in the knowledge we truly have nothing to fear. Rodger
Reminds me of that great old hymn, "master the tempest is raging", peace, peace be still.
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