Do Not Fear~God is With You
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord you God will be with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9)."
There are things that happen in each of our lives that may either bring fear or discouragement. Whatever the circumstance, as a follower of the Lord Jesus, we do not need to fear or be overcome with discouragement. He goes before us. Nothing comes as a surprise to Him. In fact, He fights our battles. "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:14)." Read those words again my friend. Our Lord fights our battles. It is up to each of us to stand firm in Him and wait for the deliverance He will bring.
When you are in a dark trial, it is very tempting to want to give up. In the trials, as you press through them and keep your eyes on Jesus, God will grow your perseverance; something that can only be done in the trials. God sees. God knows. He knows every thing you are going through. He sees your pain. He sees you suffering quietly. He sees your heartache. He sees your tears, and cares for you so deeply that He keeps them. "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in Your book (Psalm 56:8)." He loves us so very much. I really cannot even comprehend the depth of His love for you and for me. The words to a song come to mind, "Amazing love how can it be? That you my King would die for me? Amazing love I know it's true and it's my joy to honor You in all I do let me honor you."
That my friend, is how we can count it all joy when we go through various trials. We count it all joy because we know that somehow, God will work it for our good. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified (Romans 8:28-29)." We count it all joy because we know that in the trial, God is strengthening our faith. We count it all joy because God is conforming us into the likeness of His Son to display His glory to everyone around us. As we press on, as we endure for the sake of Christ, as we continue in the faith, we do not lose heart. "Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal (2 Corinthians 4: 16-18)." This life my friend, is not all there is-praise the Lord! And you can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you belong to the Lord. How can you know for sure? You know it by His Spirit that lives inside of you. The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are His. "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry Abba Father. The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory (Romans 8: 15-17)."
God shows no partiality. He is no respecter of persons. Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10: 13)." No one can ever snatch you out of His hand. Every promise God has made is for you. So, in the times during your life you walk through the valley of the shadow, do not fear because the Lord your God is with you. He will not let the darkness overtake you. Keep pressing into Jesus and know that He holds you and everything that you go through in His hand.
Your trial will soon be over. But until that day comes, hold on. Remain steadfast and don't let anything move you. And at the end of your life you can say "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing (2 Timothy 4: 7-8)."
There are things that happen in each of our lives that may either bring fear or discouragement. Whatever the circumstance, as a follower of the Lord Jesus, we do not need to fear or be overcome with discouragement. He goes before us. Nothing comes as a surprise to Him. In fact, He fights our battles. "The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still (Exodus 14:14)." Read those words again my friend. Our Lord fights our battles. It is up to each of us to stand firm in Him and wait for the deliverance He will bring.
When you are in a dark trial, it is very tempting to want to give up. In the trials, as you press through them and keep your eyes on Jesus, God will grow your perseverance; something that can only be done in the trials. God sees. God knows. He knows every thing you are going through. He sees your pain. He sees you suffering quietly. He sees your heartache. He sees your tears, and cares for you so deeply that He keeps them. "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in Your book (Psalm 56:8)." He loves us so very much. I really cannot even comprehend the depth of His love for you and for me. The words to a song come to mind, "Amazing love how can it be? That you my King would die for me? Amazing love I know it's true and it's my joy to honor You in all I do let me honor you."
That my friend, is how we can count it all joy when we go through various trials. We count it all joy because we know that somehow, God will work it for our good. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified (Romans 8:28-29)." We count it all joy because we know that in the trial, God is strengthening our faith. We count it all joy because God is conforming us into the likeness of His Son to display His glory to everyone around us. As we press on, as we endure for the sake of Christ, as we continue in the faith, we do not lose heart. "Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal (2 Corinthians 4: 16-18)." This life my friend, is not all there is-praise the Lord! And you can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you belong to the Lord. How can you know for sure? You know it by His Spirit that lives inside of you. The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are His. "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by Him we cry Abba Father. The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory (Romans 8: 15-17)."
God shows no partiality. He is no respecter of persons. Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10: 13)." No one can ever snatch you out of His hand. Every promise God has made is for you. So, in the times during your life you walk through the valley of the shadow, do not fear because the Lord your God is with you. He will not let the darkness overtake you. Keep pressing into Jesus and know that He holds you and everything that you go through in His hand.
Your trial will soon be over. But until that day comes, hold on. Remain steadfast and don't let anything move you. And at the end of your life you can say "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing (2 Timothy 4: 7-8)."
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