DECEMBER 11, 2014 When Fear Chases Me LYSA TERKEURST Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. (Psalm 91:1-2, NIV) My eyes popped open and my heart raced when my phone buzzed at 1 a.m. Good news isnt usually delivered at that hour. I hopped out of bed and grabbed my phone to read a text: Mom, police have my dorm on lockdown and are running up and down the hall shouting. I dont know whats going on but Im scared. It was Ashley, my college freshman daughter, more than seven hours away from me. I tried calling her but the reception was so bad neither of us could make out what the other was saying. Texting was my only option so I asked a series of questions trying to get a better handle of what was happening. My hands were shaking. My heart was racing. And I felt intensely helpless. When she was a little girl and cried out in the middle of the night, all I had to do was run upstairs. I could sit on the edge of her bed and rub her back. I could let her see me. Calm her with my touch. Be there to whisper reassurances. But now that little girl was a college girl very far from me. I couldnt sit on her bed and she couldnt see me. I couldnt calm her with my touch. I couldnt whisper those reassurances with my voice. All I could do was text her. And that felt completely inadequate in light of the situation. Scary images assaulted my mind with all the possible scenarios a completely shaken mama conjures up in moments of frightening uncertainty. I sank down to my knees and begged God to clear my head and give me the words to text that would help. This was one of those times I wished God would appear in a way my eyes could see Him and give me clear, step-by-step instructions saying exactly what to do. But I couldnt see Him. And no Spirit Finger wrote instructions on my wall. Instead, I felt this gentle nudge to pay attention to what Hed already given me that week: A set of verses a friend texted me and that Id passed along to another friend which is our key verse today. Psalm 91:1-2, Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. I love that these verses give us a script to say out loud, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. Quickly, I texted Ashley these verses and instructed her to say this out loud over and over until she felt some relief from her fear. And you better believe I was saying it out loud over and over as well. Isnt it interesting the two words God is called here are refuge and fortress? A refuge is a quick place you duck into to find shelter. A fortress is a place built intentionally for the purposes of exceptional security. The Hebrew word for fortress is metsudah, with one of its definitions being an inaccessible place. God is not just a quick refuge from the storm, but Hes also the place where fear no longer has access to me. Fear cant catch what it can no longer reach. Its not that bad things wont happen to my kids or me. We live in a broken world where broken things happen every day. But as a child of God I dont have to live with fear taunting and terrorizing me. We still dont know all the reasons why my daughters dorm was on lockdown. Thankfully, she and her friends were safe and we all eventually got some sleep that night. I understand that other middle-of-the-night calls dont turn out so well. Ive sadly lived through those times too. But Im determined to make some imperfect progress when Im processing fear. I now know I can feel afraid but I dont have to live afraid. I can say out loud, God, You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. And then close my eyes and picture Him lifting us to a place where fear cant catch us. Dear Lord, Im declaring today that I will not live in a state of fear. I place all of my fears into Your hands and commit to trust Your plan. In Jesus Name, Amen. TRUTH FOR TODAY: Psalm 32:7, You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. (NIV)
Posted on: Thu, 11 Dec 2014 09:06:14 +0000
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