When I Get Really Afraid

“When I get really afraid I come to you in trust. I’m proud to praise God; fearless now, I trust in God. What can mere mortals do?”

Psalm 56:3-5(MSG)

When we get really afraid….

We panic, we run, we tremble, we hide, we fight, we cry, we escape. But all those instinctual responses do is put up with the fear. Maybe you’ve been putting up with fear for some time now. Maybe you’ve been wrestling but never quite winning against fear.

This verse in Psalm, David says that when fear attempts to attack him, he responds in a way that doesn’t come naturally. The verse says, “…I come to you in trust…to praise God.” There was no panic, no running, no hiding, no escaping. David simply approached God, in all His capability to take care of whatever the situation at hand was, and trusted Him.

You can see David’s trust is secure by the next line, “…proud to praise God.” David knew where His help came from and he was ready to worship even before the breakthrough. Because if you really believe that God is who He says He is- you’ll have no problem praising for His provision even if it hasn’t arrived yet.

The part of this passage that was so valuable to me though was the line, “fearless now”. I don’t know about you, but in my life, I get worn out of trying to deal with fear. I don’t want to manage it, I want to conquer it. And this verse shows the key to not just handling the fear, but completely abolishing it.

Rather than the initial reaction to fear that comes so easily, we need to come to God, knowing and trusting that He is good and He’s got this. When you can get to the point of real trust in God- you’ll be in the place of fearlessness. Fearless doesn’t come from the lack of fear in a situation. It comes when we bring the fear to the Father and lay it down. Fearless doesn’t mean that everything is fixed. It means we trust God knows how to fix it. Fearless isn’t a feeling- it’s an act of worship, of surrender, of trust.

The Bible says that perfect love casts out all fear. So rather than panicking, praise God for His unfailing love. Rather than running, remind yourself that God’s love for you is endless, reckless, limitless, and will stop at nothing to rescue you.

“Fearless now, I trust in God.”

Be Blessed!

Jordan Smith