When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, In God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me? Psalm 56:3-4
Did you know the word fear occurs five hundred times in the Bible? And the word love occurs five-hundred and forty-seven times? Faith occurs more than three-hundred times in the Bible and believe appears just under three-hundred times. It is clear by examining the frequency of these words within the inspired word of God that He understands our human nature. God knows even though He wants us to trust him, we will still have fear and anxiety.
Why do we have fear and anxiety? There are many reasons. Some have anxiety about health as they wait for their latest test results. Others are experiencing fear about their children or other loved ones who have challenges or who are away from home for the first time. Some fear they may have said or done something that hurt a friend or a family member. Our friends, families, and loved ones provide us with joy and happiness but we feel anxiety and fear when we know they are struggling.
When we are anxious, we turn our eyes upward and know that God can reassure us and provides comfort and strength when nothing else seems to work. This comfort comes through the love and the spirit we have from Christ within us. We don’t have to know all of the particulars of how this works. We just need to have faith in God and we know He will comfort us. We must trust in Him.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding Proverbs 3:5
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act Psalm 37:5
By trusting in God, will our prayers be answered? Will God comfort us? Will He fail us?
In our own lives, the world will test us. Our own families provide challenges. In all of our challenges we know we have direct communication with God and can ask for strength and hope. We trust comfort will be received from Him and we know this will help us go through life’s trials.
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours Mark 11:24
In the verse above, Jesus tells us something very important. He said to ask in prayer, believe we will receive it, and it will be ours. Does this mean we can pray for anything and get it? Can we provide a shopping list to God of things we want? Not exactly. God’s plans may require other things. Blessings are waiting for us that we might not even have dreamt about. The way our personal battles are fixed may surprise us. Our family issues may be resolved in a different way than we would have designed, but this is part of God’s doing and will ultimately work for the good. We may wrestle with finances or jobs but coming out on the other side according to God’s plan will make us stronger, wiser, and in better shape. Waiting for these to work out requires trust. Our fears and anxieties are diminished knowing that we are His and He has our best interest in mind. Having a relationship with God means that we can rest in His plan. We can trust in His design for the resolution of our challenges. We are simply asked to pray and trust. Praying for comfort and strength first will make the journey easier.
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