Over the last few weeks, we’ve been looking at the stories that our culture tells us to live, versus the story that Jesus invites us into through the lens of Psalm 91. This week we’re looking at the narrative of fear versus love.
In a moment of despair, the young hero, wounded and with his face tarnished by dust and worry, looked over to the elderly man next to him and said, “I wish it need not have happened in my time . . ." The elderly man, with a look that could be described as an odd mixture of sympathy and amusement, a look that only arises when one has seen many years and many troubles, replied back, “So do I . . . and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
If you’re a fan of J.R.R. Tokien’s The Lord of the Rings like I am, you probably recognize that dialogue as a conversation between Frodo Baggins, a young hobbit who has been given a nearly impossible mission to save his world and is on the brink of giving up, and Gandalf, his wise guide.
As the weeks have gone by, maybe Frodo’s wish has crossed your mind, “I wish it need not have happened in my time.” Life was probably already complicated for you—you didn’t need Covid and it’s health, economic, or mental effects to make it worse. Yet, this is where you find yourself in, where we all find ourselves. The question now is, what will we do with the time that has been given to us? Will we live a story that is defined by fear and uncertainty, or by love?
We are not the first to face things that cause us to fear, or the first to find ourselves in stories that we would not have chosen for ourselves. In Psalm 91, God makes promises to deliver whoever dwells with Him from several dangers. However, as I thought about this, I realized that what’s also implied is that this person, the one dwelling with God . . . IS EITHER FACING, MIGHT FACE, OR WILL FACE ALL OF THESE TROUBLES. And these are not exactly G-rated issues this person is going through. Check this out:
(v. 3) “Deadly pestilence,” “pestilence that stalks in darkness,” “plague that destroys at midday” (v. 6)
The Psalmist seems to be talking about some serious health risks. We’d probably call these . . . yes, pandemics.
(v. 5) “terror of the night”
Sometimes the worst aspect of uncertain times is not the tangible threat, but the terror and anxiety about what might or might not occur. I think that’s what the Psalmist is getting at here.
(v.5) “arrow that flies by day”
The Psalmist seems to be referring to the threat of physical violence and war.
A lot of these dangers are real, not imagined, and the person who dwells with God is not excused from facing them. She is not promised a life that will be easy, convenient, or separated from the imminence of legitimate trouble.
Yes, this seems like a downer. It seems that even for the person who dwells with God, the story that they’re forced into is one of fear, where they’re on their own and have to fight to survive.
But wait . . . what does God have to say to the person who dwells with Him?
“‘Because he loves me’, says the LORD, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.” Psalm 91:14-15 NIV
The LORD (as Pastor Peter says, “The One who gets messy with us”) promises rescue, protection, presence in trouble, deliverance, and even honor. To whom? To the one who’s good, or perfect, or has earned it? No. To the one who loves him.
This person has learned to shift their focus from the fear in front of them, to the LORD who is with them. Instead of focusing on the things that cause them fear and living a story that is defined by fear, he or she emphasizes love in their life—for God, themselves, and others. They live a different story, a story in which the ultimate power is not their circumstances, but the God of love in whom they have chosen to trust.
HOW
As you might have guessed, choosing to live a story of love instead of one of fear is often not easy, and it’s not something that happens overnight—it’s a process. After all, the majority of the things we watch, listen to, and are shaped by are all pulling us in the direction of fear. So how do we start on this journey? Well, as we’ve learned, it seems to start with shifting our focus from fear of circumstances to love for God. But how do we cultivate this love?
Something that is helping me on this journey is realizing that how I love God is determined by how I see Him—what I think He’s like, His character. In other words, it’s going to be pretty hard for us to love God if we have a skewed picture of who He is.
So this week, I want to invite you to take 20 minutes one morning and just ask yourself the questions, “What is God like? Why should/why do I love Him?”
Write your reflections down, then simply praise Him (tell Him how great He is!) for who He is and what He’s done in your life.
Passages to start with
Psalm 23
1 John 4:7-21
Jeremiah 31:3
If you’re at a place where you’re not sure if you love God, that’s ok. I’ve been there too, and I’m still there some days. Whether we feel we’re struggling in our love for God or not, I would challenge each of us to ask ourselves, “Do I know God for who He says He really is? Or am I basing my picture of Him on what I’ve been taught by another person?”
If you have some questions about this devotional, want to dive deeper into who God has said He is in Scripture, or just want someone to pray for you, feel free to email me at ianreyes567@gmail.com, or another member of the Canyon Creek Project team at hello@canyoncreekproject.com.
He is with us,
-Ian