I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from ALL my FEARS. They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The Angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him and delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is noLACK to those who fear Him. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; but those who seek the Lord shall not LACK any good thing.
Psalm 34:1-10 NKJV (Capitalizations mine for emphasis)
Fear tried to jump me today. It’s weird how you can be sailing along for days in good spirits and all of a sudden…bam! A thought pops up in your mind and you can literally feel the fear start to knock at the door of your mind. In this instance, the fear was attacking my sense of provision (and even prosperity) that the Lord has promised. It isn’t hard to identify how moments like this happen. You are watching the news for the daily updates and information on the pandemic (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). You listen to the media voices, or read the news threads, concerning people who have lost or are losing their jobs (which includes people in my family). You absorb the tragic stories many are sharing concerning the untimely death of loved ones and your heart reaches out to them. There are many legitimate reasons to be absorbed in the news cycles and issues of our day. This pandemic is real and while we may have our differences of opinion in how governments are reacting and handling the dynamics of these days, the fact remains, I am caught in the middle of it and my mind cannot help but be affected. There is a lot of fear which has been loosed.
The Psalmist writes some important promise and principle for me today. He states that if I put praise and blessing in my mouth concerning the Lord, He will hear and deliver me from ALL my fears. Not only that, but if I fear (respect) the Lord, His presence will encamp around me and He promises me that I shall not LACK any good thing.
Amazing!
I learned years ago that if I wanted to change a thought or take a thought captive in my mind, that I must SPEAK the truth of God’s Word. If you are reading this today, please read carefully at this point…
You will never change your thoughts by internally generating another thought… (Ever try that? It feels like there is an internal wrestling match is taking place.)
Rather, you change your thoughts by your confession… (You speak out loud the Scripture and the Word of the Lord.)
You take “captive” your thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5) by using your voice to declare God’s Word in your own hearing. Remember how faith comes? Faith comes by “hearing”, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). It is one of the reasons we need regular preaching. However, you can preach to yourself too! Consistent declaration of God’s Word will establish the mind of Christ in you and not the spirit of fear.
The Psalmist knew that. I did too, but I needed reminded today.
His praise will continually be in MY mouth…
He will encamp around me because I fear and honor Him…
I shall not lack ANY good thing because His Word is true, and men have been known to lie…
Today, as is every day, a no fear day…
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