From Fear To Faith

Nov 12, 2021

Have you ever felt so paralyzed by fear that you didn’t know what to do?

Today’s devotional comes from Psalm 34:4,7:

4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me

and rescued me from all my fears.

7 The angel of the Lord encamps

around those who fear him, and rescues them.

Amen.

My wife and I moved here from the midwest about a month ago. And because we are plant parents and pup parents, we decided to rent a minivan and load up our many plants and our toy poodle, Otis, and go on a road trip across six states.

I’m not gonna lie, It was fun driving through the Rockies in Colorado, and Zion and Bryce Canyon national park. Otis, our toy poodle, had the time of his 1 year old existence!

And of course, my wife and I passed time as we listened to one of our favorite podcasts, Crime Junkies. I mean, who knew that being anxious can make your driving time go faster!

All this to say, by God’s grace, we made it safely to San Diego in five days.

So why am I sharing this story as I talk about the transformation from fear to faith?

It is because as I drew closer to San Diego, my fears grew bigger in my heart.

What if we won’t be able to find close friends?

What if people don’t like me?

What if we don’t find a place to move in right away?

Psalm 34 is about a time when David grew from fear to faith. Verse 4 says, “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and rescued me from all my fears.”

Many say, when he wrote this psalm, David was so afraid of Abimelech, he pretended

to be insane. And, isn’t it true that fear can often affect our actions? It can paralyze us sometimes.

Now, what is one way God gives us His grace to grow from fear to faith?

Verses 8-9 say, “Taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the person who takes refuge in him! You who are his holy ones, fear the Lord, for those who fear him lack nothing.”

In other words, God’s word is reminding us today we are to taste and see that Jesus is good; that Jesus is the Fearless One and the Courageous One over our lives.

This means,

we can take our fears to Christ

we can talk about our fears to Christ

we can entrust our fears to Christ

Friends, I invite you to not let your fears distract you from being faithful to God and what God wants you to do today. Don’t let fear paralyze you from pursuing God’s calling for you.

The way I like to say it is: Keep persevering in the right thing, if you believe it is a God thing.

Practically, one way we can grow from fear to faith is to worship, as Psalm 34:1 says, “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.”

Whether it is with Garden Music, or in your room or car or on Sundays with us at the Church at RB, fearlessly praise God. Sing like never before, and by God’s grace, your fears will slowly but surely turn to faith.

As I shared, my fears were growing as I approached San Diego, but as I spent time in worship, God slowly gave me faith to trust that the Fearless One is with me. And because of Jesus, I am now excited for what is to come.