Psalm 46:1-3
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging."
I don't know about you, but when I read the bible and see things like "we will not fear" or "do not fear" it occassionally stresses me out.
'Another thing to work on. Don't fear. Another things the bible tells me NOT to do.'
When the bible feels like a list of demands, it gets real heavy, real quick. However, if we believe that God is in us, and we are connected to the vine which is Jesus Christ, it is no longer a demand, but a relational invitation.
Imagine for a moment watching from a distance as the earth cracks open and mountains begin to tumble into great bodies of water. Imagine the horror and fear! I know when my fight or flight is triggered, I usually freeze. So I'd probably be frozen in place, staring at a situation that looks impossible to fix.
Yet David says, we will not fear. Yea David? A lot easier said than done. But was David trying to challenge us, or invite us into a new revelation? We don't NEED to fear. We may FEEL fear. We are human after all. But God, through the prophet David, is telling us that there is a deeper level of faith that is possible. There's no shame in this text, that if we fear we are somehow lacking. I believe it's simply an oppurtunity to explore a new level of possibility.
There is another reality, high above our human consciousness, where we truly do not need to fear even the greatest catastrophy. Will we ever reach this level of faith? Maybe not. But that's the wonder of the mystery of God! We don't have to arrive in order to seek.
Seek that level of faith may help you get through a fear of failure, fear of health problems, fear of financial burdens, fear for others, or fear of future plans not coming to pass.
For this past week I've gone back to this verse when I was feeling afraid, and though there were no mountains, I was reminded of just how big God is. And the fear began to lessen.
What is the imagery that comes to your mind as you read this scripture and devotional, and how can it help bring you into a great level of wonder and revelation of the mysteries of God?
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