Fear Less? Psalm 27

There's lots to fear. And in faith we find not that our fears go away—rather we find God's present with us as we face our fears. And here's where Psalm 27 hits me. In my fears the Psalm writer says trust in God as light and salvation.

I heard a man who lost parts of both legs to bone cancer in his teens say this psalm had helped him go through some hard times and knew right away that there's a Word from God for all of us. Just in this first verse,

¹ 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 NRSV  

There's a whole lot to fear in this world. Cancer, war, death, economic ruin, loss of relationship and more. There's a whole lot to fear. But the Psalm writer speaks a word of hope and promise.

Fear yeah it's there and it's real. But one of the gifts of living in faith is know God is with us as we confront our fears.

The Psalm writer calls God by name—he says יְהוָה אוֹרִי God is my ora, my light and וְיִשְׁעִי my yasha my salvation. This personal. The Lord is the stronghold of my life who shall I fear.

I look at this Psalm and think of all the calamities that have overtaken God's people. And here is a promise and a hope that's personal even in the middle trouble. Evildoers can asail God's people, armies can encamp against God's own, and in that moment faith can remain because God remains faithful.

Here's faith, the psalmist says, “Yet I will be confident.” In the face of fear we can fear less knowing not that what we fear goes away but that God's light shines even in the face of whatever we fear.

One this I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after, to life in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. Here's trust and faith in the face of fear. Here's cofidence in God faithfulness in God's steadfase love. Even when we can't see God's faith faith trusts faith hopes faith believes and fear diminishes. Fear less. Wait for the Lord.

Talk to your own heart and your trembling hands. Speak a Word of hope to other troubled souls Remember even in the face of evil and the forces of sin and death that God is faithful. Take courage and trust.
Peace and that for reading, John