When I am afraid...

Ever feel like you've just gotten punched in the gut?

I have. On more than one occassion. Trials swirl around like hurrican-force winds, temptations to defy God and mankind and friends and family all screaming through your mind.... Sometimes, I can just get fed up with it all ... with life.

But I remember the words of Isaiah 41:10: "Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

The power of God is a thing not understood, sometimes feared, sometimes beheld by those who trust in Him.... In these times when I fear and doubt, my Father gently chides me to remember Who He is. To remember that He is the God Who, "...has measureed the waters in the hollow of His hand, And marked off the heavens by the span, And calculated the dust of the earth by the measure, And weighed the mountains in a balance and the hills in a pair of scales..."

My Father reminds me to "Lift up your eyes on high and see who has created these stars, The One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, Not one of them is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel, 'My way is hidden from the LORD, And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God'? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, And to him who lacks might He increases power... those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not grow faint, They will walk and not become weary.".....

May I find the strength to continue to run this race, O LORD, even when I cannot see Your face, for I know You are there behind the clouds, smiling upon me, and holding me in Your arms.
Amen.