WALK IN TRUTH, not in fear
“Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you;
(The Psalms 55: 22 NASB)
He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.”
I want you to pause right where you are and gather the image of a serene lake in your mind. The water barely ripples, as the waves lap against the boat where you are sitting. There is a gentle breeze blowing against you. The morning sun feels so amazing against your upturned face. The image could not be more perfect.
Suddenly and without warning, you sense something flying near your head; so, naturally, you duck away from the object. Peeking, you see the fishing pole held in the hand of a child standing near where you are sitting in the boat. Squeals of excitement emerge from the children (yes, there are three, not one) who are fishing from separate sides of the boat. They are small children, elementary age, and fishing for the first time EVER from inside a boat.
- See the fishing frenzy.
- See the three children casting their fishing lines again and again & at the same time.
- See the captain of the boat (my husband) assisting the children, instructing them, guiding them & untangling their fishing lines.
As one child casts out his line, another child does the same, and then the third child & the youngest, attempts to cast. What amasses is a tangled mess of three fishing lines.
This scene of sudden chaos is etched firmly in my mind, even though the children are now in their thirties and forties. Time has a way of standing still when remembering past memories.
We are not to worry.
May I write that statement again with more authority: WE ARE NOT TO WORRY!
- What others think.
- What will occur in the future.
- Whether our health will fail when we are old.
- Whether the faculties of our mind will stay with us until we die.
- How we will pay for an unexpected burden that seems just so large.
- How we will make it through this day the LORD has given us to live.
- If those we love will come to know Jesus as their Savior, & even
- If our enemy casts stones at us—Our fragile body made like a glass house.
WE ARE NOT TO WORRY!
Recorded in the Old Testament (right before his death) Moses, the man of God, summons the sons of Israel to him and pronounces many blessings upon them.
“He said, . . .
(Deuteronomy 33: 26-27 NASB)
“There is none like the God of Jeshurun,
[a word referencing Israel]
Who rides the heavens to your help,
And through the skies in His majesty.
The eternal God is a dwelling place,
[GOD HAS PLACED HIS HOLY SPIRIT WITHIN HIS CHILDREN,
SO, SEE THE IMAGE IN YOUR MIND—HOW GOD DWELLS WITHIN YOU]
And underneath are the everlasting arms;
[GOD HAS PLACED HIS HOLY, RIGHTEOUS ARMS UNDERNEATH YOU,
AND HE HOLDS YOU TIGHTLY IN HIS PROTECTION & GRACE]
And He drove out the enemy from before you, And said, ‘Destroy!’
[THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE COMMANDS SATAN TO FLEE FROM OUR PRESENCE,
AND WE ONLY NEED TO BEND DOWN ON OUR KNEES & PRAY]. “
The devil lives to kill, to steal, and to destroy you and me; the Bible says so, BUT GOD also reminds us to—WALK IN TRUTH, not in fear.
- We are called to live-out God’s will and not man’s sinful nature.
- We are called to be in awe, to have reverential fear, of God.
- We are called to be God-focused, not human-focused.
We are called to not fear the giants looming over us, but to “Cast your burden upon the LORD . . .” because we KNOW “He will sustain you;” & because we KNOW “He will never allow the righteous [His children] to be shaken.”
- Praise the LORD, we can boldly march on toward our eternal destination.
- Hallelujah, we can walk unafraid.
- Thank YOU, GOD, for sending us Your Helper who sustains, calms, guides, and steadies us.
Thank YOU, GOD, that even when the ‘fishing lines’ of our lives seem to be a tangled mess and the serenity of our days seem to be lost, YOU, LORD, ARE THERE!
“so that we confidently say,
(The Letter to the Hebrews 13: 6-8 NASB)
“THE LORD IS MY HELPER,
I WILL NOT BE AFRAID.
WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?”
Remember those who led you,
who spoke the word of God to you;
and considering the result of their conduct,
imitate their faith.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
WALK IN TRUTH, not in fear, child of God.