Monday, July 20, 2009

July 20, 2009

"The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1
I recently got to enjoy some time with my almost 10 year-old granddaughter, Zoey. We spent the day at King's Dominion. She rode every roller-coaster she was tall enough to qualify for. She even rode the drop tower - 172 foot high that free-fall drops over 100 feet. I watched. She was fearless. I rode the Scooby Coaster with her.
I was thinking that it would be nice to be that fearless. Then I realized that one reason she was without fear was because she was with her dad and her granddad. The other reason is that she is 9 and doesn't know any better. Plus, she is more focused on fun than she is on fear. Focus matters!
Those of us who have lived a little longer have learned to be fearful because of our failures, our painful experiences, and our losses. We fear the future because we project our past forward.
The Psalmist boasts about his fearlessness. He has chosen to fear no one. How does that happen?
Rather than project his fears forward, he chooses to frame his future with faith. But faith is only as good as its object. Fear is the result of misplaced faith. If I trust in myself or if I trust in a false hope, that faith will fail me.
His faith is in the Lord's light and the Lord's salvation. How does that work?
One of the major fear inducers is darkness. Most of us are afraid of the dark when we are children. Even as adults we are careful about about going into dark areas. Darkness represents a lack of knowledge, a lack of understanding or knowing the wrong things. Darkness indicates a lack of relationship with God.
God is light. He bring us knowledge and wisdom and insight. We are able to see ourselves clearly and understand our need for Him. He exposes our fears so we can replace them with faith. We overcome fear as we walk out of our darkness into His light.
God is our salvation. Saved from what? From ourselves - our self-destructive nature. From our self-will that rebels against God. God's salvation delivers us from our past and secures our future - in time and for eternity.
Is fear an issue in your life? I am not talking about a fear of roller-coasters, I am talking about fear of the future. I am talking about fear that cripples relationships and paralyzes your potential.
These are fearful times. The days ahead look foreboding. How can we not be afraid?
Simple. Make God your Lord! How do you do that? Surrender your darkness to His light. Surrender your self-will and receive His salvation.
All you have to lose is your fear!