Do Not Be Afraid, He Is With You

As our relationship with God deepens, we hear His voice more and more clearly. That's an amazing privilege, but it's also a weighty responsibility. Why? Because when we believe we've heard direction from Him, we have to choose whether to follow it or not, even when it seems risky or potentially embarrassing. Once we hear, we can't remain neutral. And when we follow in faith, faith gets tested. Delays and adverse circumstances seem to mock our beliefs and our resolve. The tests can be fierce. 

God is with us in these tests. When He has spoken, we need encouragement to believe. In adversity and delays, we will face doubts, obstacles, wise-sounding but uninformed counsel, temptations to give up, and much discouragement. That's when He tells us, "Don't be afraid...don't be discouraged...I will strengthen you." God promises victory to those who endure, so He gives us enough strength - usually just enough so faith is still required - to keep us going. He wants us to succeed and not give up.

In the walk of faith, we can't afford to doubt, worry, fear, or complain - the very symptoms that kept a generation of Israelites out of their Promised Land. All of these attitudes severely undermine God's work on our behalf, not because He can't do whatever He wants but because He has chosen to relate to us on the basis of our faith. Negative attitudes and words undermine faith. They devalue the very currency we have to use in God's Kingdom. Wherever God's voice and your faith are leading you, do not be afraid or dismayed. 

Lord, if I've misheard You, I'll trust You to correct me. But until You do, I'm hanging on in faith. I reject doubt, fear, worry, and complaining. I won't give up. 

This is an excerpt from One Year Experiencing God's Presence by Chris Tiegreen. This book is available at OMF Lit and Passages Bookshops and our online store, passagesbooks.com for P365. 

All of us long for God’s presence, and we sense it―occasionally. But there are times when it seems like something’s missing . . . like deep encounters with Him. Certainty that we have heard His voice. And a palpable sense that we are experiencing His presence every day.

Like no other writer can, Chris Tiegreen draws us deeper into real intimacy with our intensely relational God. In this deluxe LeatherLike edition, The One Year Experiencing God’s Presence Devotional will cultivate your sense of God’s presence in your life, help you learn to recognize His voice, and deepen your trust that He is “always ready to help” (Psalm 46:1) in every situation.