©Joy Dunlap https://joydunlap.com
Alone in the house, I jolted awake from a deep sleep. Had I heard something? Someone? Sleeping on my side, my eyes opened to look straight into the ensuite bathroom.
Two round eyes stared back at me.
I gasped and froze.
Startled by what I saw, my heart was racing. My pulse pounding.
And, yes, I knew it wasn’t a monster. That only happens in scary movies – or scared minds.
Logically, I knew nothing threatening was there. But my mind hadn’t caught up with my emotions and my physiological responses. Like when someone jumps out and surprises us and shouts “Boo,” or when we get a tap on the shoulder when we think we’re alone.
Whatever it was, it wasn’t supposed to be there. Initially surprised by its presence, I was troubled by its existence, and wondering what to do next.
Right now, it wasn’t moving – and neither was I. It was a standoff.
Blinking and blinking, my eyes tried to change what I saw, but those two white eyes stayed fixed in place, glowing in the darkness.
If we visit a “haunted” house in October, we expect people dressed up in costume to try to scare us. We see the weird and unexpected, and our fear kicks into gear. We’re scared of what might happen if we get closer. It might jump out at us, touch us, roar at us.
But fear finds its way into our every day. Troubles that are real. Heartaches that are heavy. Or what-ifs that walk in and out of our minds – and threaten to settle in.
What we fear can control us.
At times it may paralyze us. Or it may cause us to despair.
In Psalm 55, David confesses, “My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught (verse 2b),” adding, “My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen on me. Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.(verses 4-5). But in that same outpouring of his heart, David circles back to his faith when he says, “As for me, I call to God and the Lord saves me,” with a call to others to “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.”(See Psalm 55: 16,22a)
At times fear can drive us to turn in a different direction – or to run.
Think of Jonah when God called him to Ninevah to tell the people to repent. What did he do? He went the opposite way of how God wanted. Jonah feared being embarrassed, humiliated, shamed, and perceived as being wrong.
Going forward firmly in faith is better than standing still in fear. Or running away.
Jonah learned that the hard way when he took off toward Tarshish instead of Ninevah. When the ship he was on tossed and tumbled in raging storms, and the sailors quizzed him, he was quick to say this… “I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”(See Jonah 1:9b). It was easy for him to say he worshiped God – and to acknowledge He was powerful and even created the sea. But yet…Jonah had fallen into fear – and had failed to trust in faith to follow God’s directions.
Are we ever like that? People know we’re Christians, and we trust God is Lord, all powerful and all knowing, but yet…our faith wavers, our fears kick in, and we find ourselves swimming upstream (or in Jonah’s case in the belly of a giant fish).
So about that menacing “face” I saw in the dark?
When I investigated, I discovered it was only an air purifier with a cycling circle on it that my husband had apparently plugged into the wall outlet.
But the mirror had magnified its presence. The reflection in the glass caused it to double in size creating the illusion of two eyes glowing in the darkness.
Isn’t that what happens in our lives sometimes too?
When we’re focusing on ourselves as if peering in a mirror – our difficulties can seem doubled. As we concentrate on what we alone can handle, our fears escalate.
But when we focus on the God who created us, the God who loves us, the God with the power to sustain us, we see that His power is greater than any of our fears – real, imagined or magnified in our minds.
Let’s look at five verses in Psalms to remind us that in God we can find the peace, the strength, and the confidence to face our fears – whether they be monsters in our minds, worldly problems, or relationship challenges.
Peaceful Safety
Let the light of your face shine on us. Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:6b-8
Faithful Refuge
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”…He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. Psalm 91:2, 4-6
Unfailing Love
When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love, Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. Psalm 94:18-19
Secure Stronghold
The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1
Strong Protection
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him. Psalm 28:7
The Lord gives us His Light and Love to battle the darkness. When we have peace in His power and joy in His presence, the better armed we are to face the terrors and troubles in our world as well as the “what-ifs” in our minds.
I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4
- When is a time you were frightened that turned out to be not what you imagined?
- Of the five verses from Psalms listed here, which one resonates most with you today?
- What are you most fearful of right now and why?
- What is an action you can take today – and throughout this week – to strengthen your faith in God and face your fears?
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 KJV
Remember…
Life is Better When It’s Full – Joy-full, Thank-full, Purpose-full and Friend-full! ™
*Unless otherwise noted, Scripture references are from New International Version (NIV)