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SCRIPTURE PROMPT
When We Can’t Calm Our Own Fears
He delivers
I just had to look it up. I like data — give me some numbers to play around with. Ronald Coase, renowned economist, said, “If you torture the data long enough, it will confess to anything.” I loved quoting that to my statistics students, a caution to “test all things” before one trusts completely.
So… my NIV concordance didn’t let me down when I asked it how many times we’re told to “not be afraid” or “fear not.” It’s believed that such phrases appear about 365 times in the Bible. That’s like one a day. Hmm.
Fear is a primary emotion, so what does it mean when God tells us to “fear not?” Do we become stoic humans unaffected by frightening external phenomena? Of course not!
Aren’t we instead supposed to trust Him to see us through fraught times, to help us learn to rely upon His power through the Holy Spirit?
In the Old Testament, we find Isaiah, David, and others calling God their stronghold, their righteous right hand, a refuge and strength, and a fighter. (Psalm 27:1, Isaiah 41:10, Psalm 46:1, Deuteronomy 3:22)
In the Old and New Testaments, we learn that God is always with us and He will never ever leave us (Haggai 2:5, Deuteronomy 31:6, Psalm 118:6). He is so close and knows us so…
