Don’t Be Afraid

Scripture:  Matthew 10:28-31 (Click link for scripture in Bible Gateway)

28 “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. 30 And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows. (Matthew 10:28–31 NLT)

Twice in these short verses, Jesus tells his disciples (and us) “Don’t be afraid.” We fear pain and loss, we fear that which we can’t control, and we fear the unknown. And it seems as if the more comfortable our lives become, the more stuff we have, the more things there are to be afraid of. We fear the loss of our comfortable life-style, we fear embarrassment, we fear being diagnosed with a disease for which there’s no cure and little treatment. We fear a weekend without Wi-Fi! (Oh may it not be so!)

The greatest fear is the fear of death, and the writer of Hebrews says the fear of death holds us prisoner until Jesus sets us free. 14 Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. (Hebrews 2:14–15 NLT)

The power fear holds over us is broken by surrender, by yielding, by letting go. By trusting God. Paul wrote in his farewell to some dear friends, “And now I entrust you to God and the message of his grace that is able to build you up and give you an inheritance with all those he has set apart for himself. (Acts 20:32 NLT)

The key that unlocks fear’s prison is knowing God loves us and entrusting everything we have, even life itself, to God. I believe this “entrusting” is a process that we grow into as we daily take our anxieties and fears – big ones and small ones – and intentionally place them in God’s strong and loving hands and leave them there. And then we keep doing it again and again until it becomes the way we live!

Prayer:

Father, We trust you. We trust your love, your care, and your ultimate good purpose for us, for our lives. Because we trust you, we place our fears and anxieties in your hands and we leave them in your wise and loving care. In Jesus’ Name.