Written by: Alma Lee Shumate
Psalm 56:3 “What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee.”
Do you struggle with fear? Fear can come from many places and can be the result of many different situations. Fear can paralyze, consume, and ruin relationships. Fear is a monster. Whatever the source of your fear, or the severity of the fear that grips you, the Lord has provided the antidote in His Word: Trust in Him.
All my life, I can remember struggling with fear. As a child, I would become physically paralyzed in the bathroom late at night- literally unable to move- from hearing noises and fearing what might be lurking. Teenager me would worry if I’d be accepted by my peers- what should I wear, how should I act, what should I say- then after acting, saying, and picking out the best outfit I could, I’d replay the whole event and fear would inevitably follow. Young adult me would obsess over the fear of the future- where will I go, what will I do, who will I marry- better yet, *who* would want to marry me?!? Once all my friends were married the fear and anxiety of “what’s wrong with me” would keep me up at night. When I was a young mother, I feared… now as an experienced mother, I fear… unfortunately fear has been a “constant companion” over the years.
So, what did I do? Where is the hope? Have I conquered fear?
The long of the short of it is, no, not completely. The reality is that I’m still learning. “Don’t judge me yet, there’s an unfinished part! He’s still working on me!”
The hope is it can get better. Fear can be managed and with God’s help banished as far as the east is from the west! But… you’ve got to participate and do the mental work to see it through. Start by reading these verses, write them on your bathroom mirror with a dry erase marker- I promise it will wash off- write them on a post-it note and put it on your car dashboard, write them on pretty flower paper and tape it inside your kitchen cabinet doors, order them off of ETSY and frame them in your house, memorize them… take the step. Put in the mental work. Make it happen. Get it done. It’s all for your good and God’s glory anyway!
Here’s a list to get you started- learn these and then look up more! Praise the Lord the Bible is full of them!
What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. Psalm 56:3
O Lord my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me: Psalm 7:1
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. Psalm 18:2
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. Proverbs 3:5
The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe. Proverbs 29:25
Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Isaiah 12:2
What shall one then answer the messengers of the nation? That the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it. Isaiah 14:32