Daily Devotional | When I Fear

Moses experienced fear. When God called him to deliver Israel from Egypt, Moses was afraid that his own people would not listen to him, that Pharaoh would not respect him, and that he could not speak well enough to accomplish the job (Exodus 3–4). Even so, God worked through Moses. His fear was overcome by God’s promise to be with him every step of the way.

In Psalm 56, David was fearful. He had enemies dogging his every step (vv. 1–2). They chased him “all day long” with the hope that they would ultimately take his life (vv. 2, 6). These adversaries wanted not only to kill David but also to destroy his reputation (v. 5).

David confessed that he was afraid (v. 3). This admission was the first step to transforming his mindset. “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you,” he declared (v. 3). David reminded himself of two truths about God. First, God is powerful. He can take down nations and deliver us from any situation (vv. 7, 13). Second, David reminded himself that God cares for him. In a beautiful image, David declared, “You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not all in your book?” (v. 8, ESV). God not only knows about David’s suffering, He keeps track of every sleepless night and every shed tear.

Having reminded himself of God’s power and compassion, David was able to change his perspective. He proclaimed, “In God I trust and am not afraid. What can man do to me?” (v. 11). Humans can do enormous damage to one another, but David’s point here was that they were not powerful enough to thwart God’s plan for his life.

>> Fear is a normal part of life in a fallen world. That is why the most often repeated command in the Bible is “Do not be afraid.” We all need to be reminded that “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31).