Fear and trust: Psalm 27

Psalm 27 is mainly a psalm of petition, and its petitions flow from a profound faith in a caring God. Once again we meet “God the Teacher” and “God the Protector” as we did in Psalm 25. The Psalmist is living in a dangerous world constantly at war with foes and enemies and “an army camped against me.” (v. 3).

We might not be involved in any particular war in a literal sense (although millions of Christians are in such a situation right now), but isn’t it true that in one sense or another we are engaged in a struggle or in combat with the enemies of our peace, our striving for God, and our living in faith? In all of this, God is at our side.

The Psalmist has great confidence in God and in what He can do, and this psalm becomes an urgent appeal for God’s mercy and assistance.

The Lord is my light and my help;

whom shall I fear?

·         These first two lines of the psalm can provide us with food and insight for a lifetime. I am especially drawn to the second line, whom shall I fear? So many times, our peace of mind is disturbed by fears that we have. Meditate on this. Ask the Lord to reveal to you how much of your thinking and acting may be subtly based on fear.  I know someone who had some real difficulties but who was afraid to go and talk to his superiors about them. Finally he got the courage to speak up, and the situation was resolved quickly and decisively. Are you held back by certain fears? This might be a perfect verse for you.

Though an army encamp against me

my heart would not fear.

Though war break out against me

even then would I trust. (v 3)

·         Pray for such trust at every moment of every day. Let go of a situation and trust in God to take care of it for you. A director once said to me, “What are you worried about? This entire situation is on God’s hands and He is going to deal with it at the right time.”

There is one thing I ask of the Lord,

for this I long,

to live in the house of the Lord,

all the days of my life. . . .

For there he keeps me save in his tent

in the day of evil.

He hides me in the shelter of his tent,

on a rock he sets me safe.  (v 4-5)

·         We might not be able to sleep on the sanctuaries of our churches all our days, but what we can do is allow our loving and caring and protecting God to hold us in an eternal embrace. It says in Psalm 57, in the shadow of your wings I take refuge till the storms of destruction pass by. Rest there today if you’d like.

God bless you!

Less worrying?

Those who have experienced or are experiencing a spiritual awakening tend to develop a loss of ability to worry. (The 7^th item on the list we have been discussing this year. The complete list is at the end of this reflection.)

The work we are doing to grow spiritually, whatever it may be, bears fruit in our lives. These consequences develop gradually and naturally over the course of time and can’t be rushed, or hurried, or stressed. We simply do the work, and experience the consequences that result.

This is particularly true of today’s item: a loss of ability to worry. How does this happen? It takes growth in our ability to trust that God is active in our lives at all times, that His love for us is total and unending, and that he works to bring good out of anything difficult that might occur. Never forget that his ultimate will for us is that we be saved and enter the Kingdom of Heaven for all eternity. Also remember what Saint Paul so beautifully said, that “everything works together for the good of those who love God.”  (Romans 8:28)

It can be helpful to look back over the landscape of our lives and see (even if only for the first time) how God has guided, sustained, blessed, healed, protected, comforted, inspired, and helped us in the past, and continues to do so in the present and for the future.

My own personal journey of growth in trust began in a special way when I discovered the 2^nd chapter of the Book of Sirach. Maybe it can help you as well:

Trust God and he will help you; make straight your ways and hope in him.

You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy, turn not away lest you fall.

You who fear the Lord, trust him, and your reward will not be lost.

You who fear the Lord, hope for good things, for lasting joy and mercy.

Study the generations long past and understand;

has anyone hoped in the Lord and been disappointed?

Has anyone persevered in his fear and been forsaken?

Has anyone called upon him and been rebuffed?  (Sirach 2:6-10)

One last thing: sometimes it might seem to us that we have been disappointed, or forsaken, or rebuffed by the Lord. Even then, however, do not give up hope. Time will show you that He is working to answer your prayer, although not in a way that you would have liked Him to satisfy you at the moment. Once again, I encourage you to look back over your life and see if you can find times when this has turned out to be true.

Think on these things. Pray about them. Journal about them. Continue your program of meditation. You will find yourself worrying far less; you will experience times of calm when everyone else is running around fretting and fearing. You will know peace. God bless you!

12 Signs that one is undergoing a spiritual awakening:

1. An increased tendency to let things happen rather than to make things happen.

2. Frequent attacks of smiling.

3. Feelings of being connected with others and nature.

4. Frequent overwhelming episodes of appreciation.

5. A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than from fears based on past experiences.

6. An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.

7. A loss of ability to worry.

8. A loss of interest in conflict.

9. A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.

10. A loss of interest in judging others.

11. A loss of interest in judging self.

12. Gaining the ability to love without expecting anything in return.