Day 60: Genesis 35:5

"As they set out, a terror from God spread over the people in all the towns of that area, so no one attacked Jacob's family." ~ Genesis 35:5 NLT

God told Jacob in verse 1 of this chapter that he should pack up and move to Bethel. And this isn't just Jacob - this is his entire family. Some of them haven't ever moved before - how boring! But they moving now. I can imagine they were nervous, excited, scared even. I remember when I was told we were coming to Poland. We went to visit a year before we had to leave America. There were a lot of really fun, new things, and a lot of tough things too. And then we moved, and it was much the same - there were a LOT of hard things, and a lot of awesome things too.

The people in Jacob's family probably felt the same way. Before leaving, Jacob told his family to purify themselves. They were right in God's sight.

So when they were moving, God protected them by putting a terror in their enemies. There's nothing to fear - if anything, it should be the baddies fearing US. Am I afraid of failure? (Indeed, but!) Turn the tables now, God can make FAILURE afraid of ME. Yes, He is that awesome.

But the real point here, as I'm sure is clear, is that there is no need to fear when we're with God. Because He's quite practical actually, and making failure afraid isn't all that practical. (But awesome.)

Image: Fotopedia

Day 59: Psalm 91:14-15

"The Lord says, 'I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who call on my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them.'" ~ Psalm 91:14-15 NLT

Sometimes when things get tough, I feel helpless. I know I can't do something. I know I'm not going to make it without some intervention. (Or at least I feel that way...) But here God says that He will rescue me. He says that He will protect me - provided that I call upon Him and love Him. If those criteria are fulfilled, He will answer my calls. He will be with me in my trouble - whatever trouble it might be. He will rescue me, but not only that - He will honor me. What for!? For calling out!?

God in His greatness will not only take me out of an impossible situation, but after I am thoroughly humiliated, He will honor me. The key here is that God will be with us. And if He's with us, there's nothing that we can't do. NOTHING. With God protecting us, there is nothing we should fear. Get that? Nothing. God is bigger than everything and He loves us more than anything else. What exactly was it that you were so afraid of, with such a great God backing you up?

Day 58: Psalm 57:1

"Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed." ~ Psalm 57:1 NIV

Why should God have mercy on me? Because I take refuge in Him. I've admitted I'm not good enough - I can't earn salvation on my own. (No one can by the way - all have sinned and fall short of the glory [Romans 3, I think]) When disasters come, we can take courage and find solace in Jesus, in the shadow of His wings - or the Eye Of the Hurricane.

And disasters WILL come, we can't help that. What we can do is run to Jesus, is to pray and watch the scenery change. God, in His wisdom, knows what we need, but likes to give it to us when we ask for it. Shift focus, find Jesus in your hurricanes are realize that the only place you can be truly safe is in God's embrace - the eye of a hurricane.

Day 57: Psalm 85:9

"Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, so our land will be filled with his glory." ~Psalm 85:9 NLT

Have I mentioned how much I love the Psalms? Yes!? Oh bother... Well. This is yet another great verse in the Bible (although I'm pretty sure ALL of the verses in the Bible are great) that can help us combat fear!

First of all, we have a promise - "surely His salvation is near," and because of this "our land will be filled with His glory." With the promise, however, is one condition: "to those who fear Him." Where is my focus!? What or who am I focusing on? Am I concentrated on the knowledge that Jesus can overcome everything, or am I being blinded by the things of the world, the Devil's tricks? Jesus, that lovely fellow I try to trust in brings salvation to those who accept Him. I accepted His salvation - so my life (land) will be filled with His glory. If I am filled with the glory of God it's not going to be easily contained. It's going to leak out. And others will see, and others will come to know God. I believe it.

Will you believe it?

Day 56: Proverbs 14:27

"Fear of the Lord is a life-giving fountain; it offers escape from the snares of death." ~Proverbs 14:27 NLT

There are a lot of verses in the Proverbs that explain the benefits of the fear of the Lord (also described as confidence in Him, not fearing things of the world) and this is one of them. If I fear the Lord, not only will I escape death, but I will have access to Jesus - the living water, a life-giving fountain.

And the fear of the Lord is certainly not being afraid of the world. It helps us avoid poisoned water (as the MSG puts it) and keeps us healthy. There are only two sources of spiritual water in the end, the water God gives and the water Satan gives. Satan's water weakens us, frightens us, but God's water is strengthening, and reminds us of who we are in Jesus.

Day 55: Joel 2:21

"Don't be afraid, my people. Be glad now and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things." ~Joel 2:21 NLT

I don't know about you, but I am a person. Better than that, I am a person of God. What is the Bible saying to ME then? (And you, if you've decided that you're a person.) Don't be afraid. But more than that, it's saying to be glad NOW and rejoice! Fear and gladness/rejoicing don't really go together. I suppose that's why God suggests (commands) that we replace our fear with them. Fear makes me sad. So the opposite of sadness is obviously happiness!

It's one thing to be "happy" - to smile and laugh and seem jovial - and to BE happy. Happiness is an emotion deep inside that I can't snap my fingers at. Sure, I can put on a smile and I can force a laugh (I am after all, an actor on many levels) but to BE happy, glad, to rejoice of my own accord... that takes some serious choosing. Because I believe we can choose my emotions, but if we're afraid, why in the world would we choose to reject the body's defense mechanisms?

Because God says so. And He's done great things, so He'll DO great things. For those who wait, in any case.

Day 54: Genesis 21:17

I'd like to try something a little differently today. Read the different versions (which all say the same thing in different ways) and think about what God could be saying to you.

"Meanwhile, God heard the boy crying. The angel of God called from Heaven to Hagar, 'What's wrong, Hagar? Don't be afraid, God has heard the boy and knows the fix he's in." ~Genesis 21:17 MSG

"God heard the boy crying, and God's angel called to Hagar from heaven. He said, 'What is wrong Hagar? Don't be afraid! God has heard the boy crying there.'" ~Genesis 21:17 NCV

"God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, 'What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.'" ~Genesis 21:17 NIV

"And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is." ~Genesis 21:17 KJV

Day 53: Psalm 17:6-9

"I am praying to you because I know you will answer, O God. Bend down and listen as I pray. Show me your unfailing love in wonderful ways. By your mighty power you rescue those who seek refuge from their enemies. Guard me as you would guard your own eyes. Hide me in the shadow of your wings. Protect me from wicked people who attack me, from murderous enemies who surround me." ~Psalm 17:6-9 NLT

I spy proof that when in trouble, I should pray. If David says something like, "I am praying to you," "listen as I pray," then I can easily conclude that David is doing what when he is in trouble? (Read the whole psalm for this context, it's only 15 verses long) PRAYING!!! Why is he praying? Because he knows God will answer.

I am intrigued by what David asks of God. Not only does he ask for protection, but he also asks that God's unfailing love would be shown in wonderful ways. To me, that shows that David understands that even if God doesn't work the way he expects, He is still good. God always will love him. Here is what David asks for, specifically in these verses:

~ "Show me Your unfailing love (in wonderful ways)"

~ "Guard me as You would guard Your own eyes"

~ "Hide me under the shadow of Your wings"

~ "Protect me from wicked and murderous people"

I am also intrigued by how David describes God. He says, "by Your mighty power," implying that he believes that God is all powerful. He also goes on, saying, "You rescue those who seek refuge from their enemies," showing that God's character is one that will deliver His people. As long as His people are seeking refuge, anyways. God apparently likes to help when asked. He approves when we trample our pride and ask for His help. He doesn't approve when I assume He knows what I need.

I think He does that to help us realize what we need, and what He provides. If He always provided health, we wouldn't know we needed it. We need sickness and injury to understand that we need health, if that makes sense. If health wasn't a variable, we wouldn't thank Him for giving it to us. We wouldn't be able to glorify Him for it.

And our pleasure and purpose is to glorify God for how great and wonderful He is. And in order to reveal what that entails, He allows some hardships upon us so we realize what we're praising Him for. And when we ask, He comes through and answers.

Day 52: Ruth 3:11

"Now my daughter, don't be afraid. I will do everything you ask, because all the people in our town know you are a good woman." ~Ruth 3:11 NCV

All right, we know that in this story Boaz is speaking to Ruth. But since I like to stick to my stubborn understanding that the Bible was written for all of us, the children of God, I'd like to imagine Jesus speaking this verse straight to me and you. Turn the imagination on and just picture Him... and this is what He has to say:

~Don't be afraid...

~I will do everything you ask...

If that doesn't give you confidence, (it encouraged Ruth!) I have no more to say. Although I would warn you not to give your hopes up, because even though we "have not because [we] ask not", God's probably not going to give you Candy Mountain and a PS3 for your birthday just because you asked Him to. (But He might give you a gift of the Spirit! Who knows!?)

Day 51: Psalm 121:7-8

"The Lord will keep you from all harm - he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." ~Psalm 121:7-8 NIV

Security is another opposite of fear. And few things make me feel more secure than knowing and living like I believe the above verses. Because even though bad things happen, I know that God will keep me from all harm. Yeah, maybe I broke my arm. But God kept me from losing it! That's who He is. And what harm could some of the lessons I learned from breaking an arm do to me? God is watching over my life, making sure that I take opportunities as He sends them.

And the best part is that He will keep watch over me now and forevermore. Wherever I come, wherever I go, I can't shake God off of me. And that is one comforting thing to think about.

Going to college? "The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." Going to America? A new school? A new job? A new continent? "The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore."

PS: He loves you, too.

Day 50: 1 Peter 3:14

"But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don't worry or be afraid of their threats." ~1 Peter 3:14 NLT

This one's a double whammy on it's own: "Don't worry OR be afraid." Especially if we're doing the right thing, if we're obeying God then we shouldn't have to bother about the plots and schemes of jealous evil people. Suffering is commonplace, and if we're suffering for God, well then, why worry? Jesus has got us, and Jesus has already been through the worst of the suffering. We suffer because other people sin. Jesus suffered because I sinned, because you sinned, because let's face it: everybody sins. And where there is sin, there will be suffering. But I don't have to be afraid of this threat, because what can they do that's not already being (or been) done?

In the end, fear is a choice. Worrying, it's a choice. God, help me to choose trust and confidence!

Day 49: Isaiah 35:4

"Say to people who are frightened, 'Be strong. Don't be afraid. Look, your God will come, and he will punish your enemies. He will make them pay for the wrongs they did, but he will save you.'" ~ Isaiah 35:4, NCV

Here there are two commandments. There's the commandment to be strong, to fear not. But there is also the command to "say to people who are frightened" all of these things. God wants to use us to help others who are scared. With this verse, we can take courage, and with this verse we can bring courage to others.

Are you frightened? Then today I'd like to encourage you to be strong, and to not be afraid. God will come. He will punish your enemies - He will save you, if you let Him.

Day 48: Psalm 145:19

"He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them." ~Psalm 145:19 NIV

I love this verse! God gives His people desires, He gives us dreams. And when we live for Him, when we live in confidence of His truth, He fulfills those desires. He's not a deaf God, He hears our cries, and He will deliver us when we cry out to Him for help. Because we can't fulfill our dreams with our own strength, we have to meld His strength with our passion and His love.

God will bring your dreams to pass, if you let Him. He hears the cry of your heart, and He will save you. The Bible says so. And He loves you - He loves you so much more than you can possibly imagine.

Day 47: Proverbs 3:25

"Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked." ~Proverbs 3:25 NIV

The blood of Jesus, when we accepted Him into our hearts and asked Him to forgive us, took our sins and eradicated them. And He does this every time anyone asks for forgiveness. Now, in Proverbs, the wicked are people who have hardened their hearts against God and have not asked Jesus into them. Do you have Jesus?

Then why are you afraid of the disasters that occur to the wicked? The ruin? You are not wicked, and if you are, all it takes is a sincere apology and change of habits to be rescued from your fears! Thus, you have no need to be afraid. God says so. And if God says so, by gum, you shouldn't need me telling you too!

Photo: Fotopedia

Day 46: Psalm 2:11-12

"Serve the Lord with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling. Submit to God's royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities - for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!" ~Psalm 2:11-12 NLT

This verse in and of itself is fairly intimidating. Basically the opposite of what I'm looking for. Start at the beginning - serve the Lord. There's also a couple of instructions verifying how to serve the Lord: with reverent fear, rejoicing and trembling, in essence recognizing God for who He is - almighty.

Then submit to God's royal son - okay, I've given my life to Jesus. But wait - if I don't God will become angry? I'll be destroyed in the midst of all of my activities? His anger flares up in an instant? Is this the God I read about, slow to anger and quick to forgive? It doesn't seem that way. But maybe that's because we're reading it all in one verse. Let's say this one verse spans a lifetime. Submit to God's royal son. Let's say I don't. As I live my life averse to what God wants, his patience is deteriorating. He's getting angry that no matter what He says, no matter what miracles He does, I ignore Him. (Hypothetically speaking, of course.) Because of all of this, when I die His anger will burn against me and when I stand in front of Him at judgement, His anger will flare up and He'll have to cast me into Hell. But since I have submitted to Jesus, I don't have to worry about that. Jesus will vouch for me, and God will see Jesus' purity instead of my failure. "Wait, what about the part about getting destroyed in the middle of my activities?" The second coming of Jesus comes into play, now. When Jesus comes, He's probably not going to do it on Christmas. Or maybe He will. Regardless, I'm going to be doing the same things I do everyday - ordinary activities. And without warning, I'm going to pop in front of the Judgement throne. If I hadn't submitted to Jesus, I'd be destroyed in the midst of all of my activities - throne into Hell. But we shouldn't fear, because we HAVE submitted to Jesus, and He is our Lord!

So for those of us who choose Jesus as our refuge, we can rejoice! When Jesus comes, we're going to Heaven! We won't be destroyed, but rather preserved. What greater joy can we have? And what confidence that He will save us?

Photo: Fotopedia

Day 45: 2 Kings 17:39

"Rather, worship the Lord your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies." ~2 Kings 17:39, NIV

Other than the fact that God tells me to not be afraid, there is one reason that I should never need to fear, and that is in the personality of God Himself. The more we learn about Him, the less fear we should have. Who will deliver us from our enemies? It's God. We can't save ourselves, that's just a fact of life. If we can't trust in our own strength, what can we trust in?

Yup, we all know in our heads that it's Him. Get to know Him better by praying and reading His word! And worship Him! Seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. You can count on it.

Day 44: Hebrews 10:31, 35

"It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God. [...] So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the reward that it brings you." ~Hebrews 10:31, 35, NLT

I recommend actually reading Hebrews 10 for today. I don't think you will regret it. Put on a Red's "Take It All Away," and you'll be set. Read. Pray. Praise.

Trusting God isn't JUST something I should instinctually do. It's also apparently something I'm rewarded for. Even if that reward is "just" peace of mind at the time. The way I've set up the verses above makes it sound like a threat... which is why I maintain that YOU read the entire chapter. But also don't forget to maintain your confident trust in the Lord.

Here, have a link: Online Bible

And another link for the song: "Take It All Away"

Day 43: Acts 18:9

"One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and said: 'Don't be afraid! Speak out! Don't be silent! For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to me.'" ~Acts 18:9-10, NLT

"One night the Master spoke to Paul in a dream: 'Keep it up, and don't let anyone intimidate or silence you.'" ~Acts 18:9, MSG

These commands to Paul that came during one of his stays in Corinth are blatantly applicable to today. After all, the only difference between Paul and me is the fact that I live in the 21st century, and Jesus did not blind me when He revealed Himself to me. Truth is, our goal in life, our purpose - it's the same as Paul's was. We are to spread God's word, spread His truth, reflect His light. God's command to us, then, is to not be afraid, to speak out, and to not remain silent! God's word today and everyday is to keep up the good fight, and not let anyone or anything intimidate us into silence about Him.

Lord, help me to remain indomitable in the face of adversity against You. May my voice ring out through the dark, proclaiming Your truth and Your hope!

Amen

Day 42: Jeremiah 46:28

"Do not be afraid, Jacob my servant, for I am with you, says the Lord. I will completely destroy the nations to which I have exiled you, but I will not completely destroy you. I will discipline you, but with justice; I cannot let you go unpunished." ~Jeremiah 46:28, NLT

Okay. So I'm not a Jacob. But I AM God's servant. Thus, to me the Lord says I shouldn't be afraid, because HE is with me. That is the most important part, and if you've got that you don't even need to read any more.

But I'm going to write more because of what God says next. He will completely destroy the nations He has exiled me to - the world and Satan, nowadays - but He won't completely destroy me for my sins. And that is a reason to hope. (Although I already knew this, since I've got Jesus... but anyways, it's a good reminder!)

All that hope doesn't mean He's not going to discipline me, though! It's not like I can just get away with anything because He'll forgive me afterward. Every sin has physical consequences. We can't get away unpunished! Be it failure of health, be it failure in family, be it an "F" at school, sin has consequences. And we can't just ignore that. But we don't need to be afraid of being "not good enough," and we certainly needn't fear God destroying us completely, or God allowing the devil to crush us. As long as we're following Him, His hand will be upon us, to hold us on the right path and to protect us. Amen!

Day 41: Mark 5:36

"Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him 'Don't be afraid; just believe.'" ~Mark 5:36, NIV

Jairus, he's a nice fellow and a synagogue leader. Since his daughter is dying, he asks Jesus for help. Which is a good choice that we can take example from. But it's not quite that simple, Jesus doesn't snap his fingers and make the girl healed in the second of asking. He goes with Jairus to their home. But along they way, an old lady gets healed. Cool, right? Double healing!

Thing is, that took some time off of the daughter's ticking clock, and after the healing of the old woman, a bunch of people went to Jairus and told him his daughter is dead.

I think we can all relate to Jairus. We may have a problem. So we bring it to God. That's good, that's right, and what God wants. But on the way, God does something, something amazing - but do we see it that way? Or do we just see God "wasting" time, and our problems increasing? How many times have you been tempted to give up? How often have you been terrified that... He's not there anymore?

Jesus hears your doubts, and you know what He says when He hears them? The same thing he told Jairus after his daughter had died: "Don't be afraid; just believe." He says it to you, He says it to me, c'mon, just believe!

Day 40: Deuteronomy 31:23

"The Lord gave this command to Joshua son of Nun: 'Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you." ~Deuteronomy 31:23, NIV

I always felt bad for Joshua, being the son of "None." I mean Nun, of course! (To use a prevailing Shakespearian sentiment, who needs to know how to spell?) Okay, okay, wordplay aside I'm actually really jealous of Joshua. As I read the book about him, God is always telling him to be strong. And courageous. God's always promising Joshua great things.

But wait!

God breathed the word - He wrote it for us too! So... all those times God tells Josh to be strong, to be courageous, when God promises Joshua all of those amazing things over his life, He's telling it to us! So the Lord's command to you, son/daughter of _insert your parent's name here_, is:

"Be strong and courageous, I myself will be with you."

I hope we will follow God's command today. We want to please Him, after all. So take courage, little heart! Your God LOVES you. He's got BIG plans for you, plans to make you great in His sight, to change your world for Him!

Day 39: Psalm 34:22

"But the Lord saves his servants' lives; no one who trusts in him will be judged guilty." ~Psalm 34:22, NCV

The Lord brings judgement. And if we've sinned, the judgement for our sins results in death. But wait! We've got Jesus on my side! And thanks to Jesus, our life is SAVED, and as this psalmist said hundreds of years before Jesus came, no one who TRUSTS in HIM (coughJesuscough *hack*wheeze*sputter*) will be judged guilty.

If we continue defining trust as the opposite of fear, we don't have to be afraid of God's judgement on us unless we haven't confessed our sins and asked Jesus to forgive us. We are servants of the living God, even better, we're His children. He is a GOOD father, we can trust Him, and we don't have to be afraid of anything because our good father saves our lives.

ALL. THE. TIME. (you better believe it!)

Day 38: Job 13:15

"Though he slay me, yet I will trust in him: but I will maintain my own ways before him." ~Job 13:15, KJV

We all know the story of Job. He was righteous in God's sight, best of the whole land. Satan saw this, and asked for God's permission to try and crush Job - Satan claimed Job only worshipped God because God blessed him so. God agreed, and the Devil began tearing Job's perfect life apart, piece by piece. Despite this, Job never stopped trusting/believing in God.

When the storms pile around you and the pieces start falling apart, you've got to remember you have an enemy who wishes to kill, steal from and destroy you. You've got to search your heart and make sure you are clean before God, confessing any sin and getting forgiveness. And you can't let the waves and the wind trick you into sinning.

Trust God. Because He is good. ALL the time. And He won't give you more than you can handle with Him. He is always enough. Even in death, as Job says, He is enough! Job lost everything, but he could still say that. Put your hope, then, in Him!

Day 37: 2 Kings 17:35

"With whom the Lord had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them." ~2 Kings 17:35, KJV

This is a different kind of fear than the fear that will be and has usually been talked about. This is fear of gods - the actual meaning is closer to honor than anything else. (In fact, reading all of the other versions reveals that they think it means respect too.) But still, it is fear, and since we are working on overcoming fear, I want to take a look at this piece of the story as well.

Other gods are known as idols. An idol can be ANYTHING - if it is more important to you than God, it is an idol. We are not to fear, be afraid of the power of, or honor idols. God must always be our number one priority. American idol, sports idols, celebrities, friends, iPods, the Internet, anything and anyone can be considered an idol. We can't let these things control us. They must not be allowed to have any control in our lives, they cannot dictate anything that we do, or else we become enslaved to them and then are stuck in sin. Jesus died to separate us from sin, He died to free us from these things, we must not run so quickly right back to them.

We don't need to be afraid of these things controlling us, as long as our focus is on God. But we do have to watch our hearts and make sure our focus IS on God... or else we might get in as bad of a mess as the Israelites did time and again in the Bible. Don't be afraid of the power of other "gods"; they can't touch you if you're in the right with God.

Day 36: 2 Kings 6:16

"Elisha said, 'Don't be afraid. The army that fights for us is larger than the one against us.'" ~2 Kings 6:16, NCV

The king of Israel and the king of Aram are at war. The king of Aram had set a trap for the Israelite king, but Elisha informed the king and pressured him to stay away. The king of Aram was convinced there was a traitor among his soldiers. But one of the officers said "It's not us, it's that prophet Elisha!" So the king of Aram sends a whole boatload of officers to catch Elisha. Now, his servant woke up one morning and when he looked out of the tent, he saw all of the officers, and he freaked. "ELISHA! WHAT DO WE DO!?"

And that's where the verse above applies.

The army that fights FOR us is larger than the one against us. I would daresay that even if the army that fights FOR us isn't larger, then it is always stronger. Because we fight for God. And God is with us. And God is bigger and stronger than ANY force that could POSSIBLY come against us. And since we've accepted Jesus into our hearts, that means we're on His side. And He ALWAYS wins in the end. So what's to worry about? It's like in books, the protagonist always wins. When we're on God's side, we will always win. You might not win the way you expect to, (c'mon, the apostles were martyrs!) but you will emerge victorious, in the end. So don't be afraid! You're betting on the winning horse. You're not going to lose your heavenly treasure, to continue the metaphor. The Devil, he's gonna lose in the end, there ain't nothing he can do about it; you don't have to be afraid of his powers.

Day 35: Philippians 3:3

"The real believers are the ones the Spirit of God leads to work away at this ministry, filling the air with Christ's praise as we do it. We couldn't carry this off by our own efforts, and we know it." ~Philippians 3:3, MSG

Christianity is based on a very fundamental truth: humans cannot come before God clean with their own strength. Everyone will sin, and only the spilling of blood can cover over that sin. We need help to come before God.

And we have to trust Him to do it for us.

The verse above says the real believers are the ones who trust God enough to follow His spirit to work away at His ministry, singing for joy while they're at it. I'm not saying we need to be singing while we crunch numbers at school, work, or whatever, but we need to be aware that we need God's help, and be willing to submit to Him. And then we'll know that He won't let us fall so hard that we can't get back up again. Because we know who our God is, we can keep our eyes trained on Him and His loving awesomeness.

And with our focus on something that awesome, why would we even glance at things that scare us?

Day 34: Psalm 62:7

"My victory and honor come from God alone. He is my refuge, a rock where no one can reach me." ~Psalm 62:7 NLT

Sound like a Klingon proverb, this verse does. Victory, honor? The most important things, for a Klingon. I suppose if Klingons did exist, they might have a proverb like that.

But the similarities between the fictional Klingon culture and a psalm are not what I'd like to draw attention to. If I'm going to draw attention I'd like it to be to God. Victory and honor, or "glory" as some translations say, come from God, and should go back to God in the form of praise. And when things are going crazy, God is a refuge! When the battle is raging around me, when it looks like I'm going to lose, I must remember that victory comes from God. And that no one can reach me when I'm in God's arms. I am separated from the mess of the world, I am set on a rock above the crashing waves. Sure, I might be able to feel the spray of the sea on my face, but I won't drown. I might even get a little bit wet. It's not as though God is going to protect me from EVERYTHING - challenges are what make us grow, conflict makes us better. And if you don't believe me, just try and figure out the change a character goes through in your favorite book. Books are made to be believable, and our favorite books do the best job of it. So stand firm and live in the confidence that God will save you. He might not protect you from everything, but He will rescue you from what you can't handle on your own.

Day 33: Genesis 46:3

"Then God said 'I am God, the God of your father. Don't be afraid to go to Egypt, because I will make your descendants a great nation there.'" ~Genesis 46:3 NCV

In the NCV, Genesis 46:1-3 sounds a lot like the story of Samuel, except that Jacob already knew to say "Here I am," and God was blessing him instead of warning him. I could definitely take example from Old Testament heroes - when God was calling, instead of wondering, "herm, where could that be coming from? Is it the Lord!?" they just obediently gave themselves up to use by God, saying, "Here I am." I'm thinking Moses, I'm thinking Jacob, I'm thinking Samuel specifically, but *if* I took the time too look I'm sure I could find more examples. It's a very prevalent phenomenon, one we should take into consideration a little more often.

Anyways, Jacob has just found out from the brothers that Joseph is alive and has invited the ENTIRE household to Egypt to tide over in the famine. Jacob is sleeping, and God comes to him in a vision.

"Jacob, Jacob."

"Here I am."

"Don't be afraid to go into Egypt, I promise, I've got BIG plans for your children there."

So Jacob went.

When God is calling us out of our comfort zone, it's for a reason. It's usually so that He can use us to impact other people. And so that He can make us more like Him. And if He's the one doing the calling, there's no need to be afraid, because His promise is to fulfill His great plans for us! Don't be afraid to obey God!

Day 32: 1 Samuel 17:37

"God, who delivered me from the teeth of the lion and the claws of the bear, will deliver me from this Philistine. Saul said, 'Go. And God help you!'" ~1 Samuel 17:37 MSG

The Psalmists often refer to remembering the good things God has done when things seem bleak and hopeless. (And I probably will often refer to the Psalmists referring, because it's a good point) And remembering things God has done for ME, recalling all of the Bible stories and missionary stories and miracles in general are always what I want to be thinking of if/when I ever get intimidated. David, as he gets ready to fulfill one of the most well-known stories in Sunday School, has his mind on the right track. He's NOT fighting for glory and honor and all the ladies. He's fighting for his God. And his God is on his side. His God has never failed him, and he has full confidence that He never will. So why fear, when I KNOW God makes all things work for the GOOD of those who love Him? Remember the Bible heroes, remember God, and face fears with prayer!

Also, it's honorable to note that Saul did his best to encourage little David. We can take example, and with our hearts in the right place we can encourage the body, like God calls us to. When someone is uncertain, take a look and see if you can't find a verse of confidence for them! If someone is intimidated, chuck a fistful of the times God has been faithful in your life, their life, and in the Bible. Cultivate your spiritual fruits, and help others when they need it too.