Faith or Fear

When I am afraid, I will trust in you.

Psalm 56:3 (NLT)

Fear; it’s a four-letter word, situated somewhere in the middle of the dictionary. Yet it takes up residence in so many lives. It does not spare anyone, from toddlers to the elderly. Those rich or poor, able or disabled, male or female, experience fear at some point in their lives.

If you are alive and breathing, you’ve experienced fear. It can squeeze the breath out of you, consume every second of every day, rack up medical bills that only exacerbate the issue, and send you to the grave at an early age. 

It’s no wonder God mentions fear again and again throughout the Bible. For where worry and doubt hang out, fear is usually not far behind. David knew about fear. He quickly learned to overcome it with faith. When he faced a giant, David’s weapons were a slingshot and an unwavering faith in God. When running from King Saul, his defense was a cave and steadfast trust in the LORD. When seized by the Philistines, his tactic was to pretend insanity and place His hope in God.

Fear and faith are as opposite as earth and water. Where one advances, the other must recede. Faith versus fear is a deliberate choice each one of us must make in the face of trials. I’m not saying it’s easy to stand up to a giant and claim victory with just a slingshot and a pebble. Yet God honors our response when we step out in faith and trust Him with the outcome.

Thought: “Faith, which is trust, and fear are opposite poles. If a man has the one, he can scarcely have the other in vigorous operation. He that has his trust set upon God does not need to dread anything except the weakening or the paralyzing of that trust.” – Alexander MacLaren