Getting "Through" Without Fear
You can live with victory over fear. No matter your past, the abuse you suffered, the wrongs you did, the failures or mistakes, your Shepherd will get you through. You are more than a survivor.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Psalm 23:4.
What are you thinking when you are going “through it?” David thought to himself and possibly out loud, saying, “I will fear no evil.” So what does he mean? What is he saying?
Fear
I will not fear, be afraid, stand in awe, or feel reverence for any evil. That is what the word “fear” means. This word can mean to be frightened, but it also means to stand in awe or feel reverence so that you can see the comparison. Fear is worship.
How often do I feel a reverence for the problem? Instead of the Shepherd, we focused on the problem, the hurt, the abuse, or whatever. David had decided to focus on, feel reverence for, and stand in awe of his Shepherd, not the shadows, not the horrible things that were happening or could happen to him.
Fear is the emotional reaction of terror or apprehension. The same word is used to honor someone or something. One dictionary mentions that it is not a simple fear but reverence, recognizing the power and position of an individual or thing.
The word fear speaks of feeling respect or awe. It is exalting something or someone.
Do you see that when we fear something, we revere it or worship it? We are to fear God. That fear is reverence, extreme respect, exaltation, not trembling in terror.
God is love. The Lord is good; just taste and see.
When we live in fear of anything but God, we have shifted our focus to our fear, which means we have elevated our fear to a place of worship.
Choose to see the Saving Shepherd, not the shadows.
Evil
David says that he will fear no evil. What is evil? It is not the idea of being wicked. Evil refers to distress, misery, injury, calamity, or harm. David said, “I will not fear adversity, affliction, bad, or wrong.”
His rebellious son and his army surrounded David. David’s best friend had just betrayed him and sided with Absalom. Death loomed in the shadows for David and those few who were still loyal to him, but he chose to fear no evil. Evil refers to injury when David’s injury was imminent.
Evil refers to unpleasing, deformed, unhappy, or going ill with someone. So, while evil can mean something not morally pure or good, it also refers to so much more.
I will not fear evil.
David had decided to focus on the Shepherd, not the shadows, not the danger, not the disaster that his life had become, but on his Deliverer.
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? Psalm 27:1.
The LORD, I AM, is not only his Shepherd but also his Light, and his Salvation or rescue. Why would David be afraid when he knew this truth?
Yes, fears can come, and we spend time worrying and in fear, but David had learned that when his fears raged, it was time to trust in the LORD, I AM, his Shepherd.
What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. 4 In God I will praise his word, In God I have put my trust; I will not fear What flesh can do unto me. Psalm 56:3–4.
Fear loses its power when we understand not how much we love God but how much our Father loves us, and we nearly drown in such deep love.
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. 19 We love him, because he first loved us. 1 John 4:18–19.
When we gain a better, well-formed, Biblically based understanding of his love, grounded in truth rather than our feelings, then fear vanishes. God is love. His love for us was so great that he took on human form, lived among us, died carrying our sin, was buried, and rose to life to live eternally. Jesus is not a ghost, not a spirit, not something you feel, but a real living live person. He is the God who knows us, loves us, and feels everything we are going through. He became one of us to love us perfectly. Grab that and kick the fear out.
Know this: Even when you fail in your love for God, doubt Him, or mess up, that doesn’t change the unchanging God. He is faithful when we are not. He can’t stop being who He is when we aren’t what we should be.
If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself. II Timothy 2:13.
Your job is to take strength, to be brave, and to believe or trust. Don’t faint, fuss, or fret because God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9.
Just remember the 12 spies. Ten looked at the shadows and fears, and two looked at the Shepherd. The nation was cowardly, looking at Goliath, but David cast out fear, trusting his Shepherd.
Remember, if you have any fear at all—and I “fear” most of us do—that fear did not come from God.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
II Timothy 1:7.
So bask in His love, focus on His power, and you, too, will be able to live with victory over your fears.
Through the Valley
In shadows deep, where darkness reigns,
I tread a path of unseen pains.
Yet in this valley, fraught with strife,
I feel the pulse of endless life.
For though the shadows loom so near,
My heart beats strong, devoid of fear.
Not evil's grasp, nor death's cold hand,
Can shake the faith on which I stand.
My Shepherd walks this path with me,
His presence sets my spirit free.
His rod and staff, my comfort sure,
Guide me through trials I must endure.
In love profound, beyond all measure,
I find my strength, my hope, my treasure.
No longer do I bow to dread,
But to the One who lights my tread.
Through deepest dark or brightest day,
I choose to trust, I choose to say:
"Though shadows fall and fears arise,
My God, my Light, before me lies."
So let the valley come what may,
I'll fear no evil on my way.
For in God's love, all fear must cease,
And in His presence, I find peace.