I Will Not Fear, God is With Me

Photo taken by Sallee Bonham

The sermon at church today was on fear. Brother Jimmie, my pastor, used Matthew 8, Jesus Calms the Storm, and Isaiah 43. Way back in September, I posted "A Command From Jesus - Quiet! Settle Down!" , which also uses Matthew 8. At that time, my inspiration was from a "Girlfriends in God" daily reading whose perspective is that we can be the storm. 

Today, the point is to not be afraid and have faith. Jesus was sleeping. The disciples didn't understand that they were not in danger. Jesus was with them. Jesus is with us. When a furious storm assaults our life, we are supposed to have faith and not be afraid. Jesus is our shelter from the storm. He will calm the winds and seas that periodically come against us as we go about our daily business. 

In Isaiah 43: 1-5, God reminds his people that he created us and formed us. I used bold type to emphasize the words that really grab my attention.

1But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob,

         And He who formed you, O Israel,

         “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

         I have called you by name; you are Mine!

2“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

         And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.

         When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,

         Nor will the flame burn you.

3“For I am the LORD your God,

         The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

         I have given Egypt as your ransom,

         Cush and Seba in your place.

4“Since you are precious in My sight,

         Since you are honored and I love you,

         I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for your life.

5“Do not fear, for I am with you;...

God knows my name.
God has declared that I am his. He is with me when I go through the waters and fires of my life. He will not let me be overcome. Wow, I am precious and God loves me. Are your eyes starting to tear up and leak tears of joy? Me too. The Lord's words apply to all of his people. He knows us. We have no secrets from God. There is no reason to fear anything when you are one of God's people because he has told us,"I will be with you."

Psalm of the Week - Psalm 27:1-3 - February 24, 2014

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When the wicked advance against me
    to devour[a] me,
it is my enemies and my foes
    who will stumble and fall.
3 Though an army besiege me,
    my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
    even then I will be confident.

Personal Application

Lord, you are my light and my salvation. I will not fear.

Lord, your are the stronghold of my life. I will not be afraid.

When those who would harm me advance against me, It is they who will stumble and fall because you are with me and I will not fear.

Even if an army besieges me, I will have no fear in my heart. Even if war breaks out against me, I will continue to be confident because you are with me. Amen

Inspirational and Spiritual Poetry: Fear Poems

Inspirational and Spiritual Poetry: Fear Poems: I was told that FEAR is an acronym meaning False Evidence Appearing Real . So if this is true then fear is only an illusion!

Fear Not

Though the sun has passed me by,

and dark clouds covers the sky,

though a tear falls from my eye,

 my faith in the Lord will not die.

Though the sky may be dark and gray,

and I don’t have anywhere to stay

and though I struggle throughout the day,

 I will continue to trust in the Lord and pray.

Though I do not see any comfort in sight, I

have faith everything will be alright!

My Birthday

Today is my birthday and I wanted to share my cake with you. My journey is on a one-way road to and for Jesus. With him, I have no limits. Psalm 18 tells us what we can do when we are his faithful servants. My daily job is to spread the Good News that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. It is the great commission. I pray that your journey finds you moving toward the cross. Amen.

Psalm of the Week - Psalm 25 - February 17, 2013

I felt that this psalm needed to be posted in it's entirety because it is such a complete prayer that applies to each reader. 

Psalm 25

Of David.

1 In you, Lord my God,
    I put my trust.

2 I trust in you;
    do not let me be put to shame,
    nor let my enemies triumph over me.
3 No one who hopes in you
    will ever be put to shame,
but shame will come on those
    who are treacherous without cause.

4 Show me your ways, Lord,
    teach me your paths.
5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are God my Savior,
    and my hope is in you all day long.
6 Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love,
    for they are from of old.
7 Do not remember the sins of my youth
    and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me,
    for you, Lord, are good.

8 Good and upright is the Lord;
    therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
9 He guides the humble in what is right
    and teaches them his way.
10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful
    toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.
11 For the sake of your name, Lord,
    forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

12 Who, then, are those who fear the Lord?
    He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.
13 They will spend their days in prosperity,
    and their descendants will inherit the land.
14 The Lord confides in those who fear him;
    he makes his covenant known to them.
15 My eyes are ever on the Lord,
    for only he will release my feet from the snare.

16 Turn to me and be gracious to me,
    for I am lonely and afflicted.
17 Relieve the troubles of my heart
    and free me from my anguish.
18 Look on my affliction and my distress
    and take away all my sins.
19 See how numerous are my enemies
    and how fiercely they hate me!

20 Guard my life and rescue me;
    do not let me be put to shame,
    for I take refuge in you.
21 May integrity and uprightness protect me,
    because my hope, Lord,[c] is in you.

22 Deliver Israel, O God,
    from all their troubles!

Psalm of the Week - Psalm 18:30-33 - Week of February 10, 2014

30  As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless.He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.

31  For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?

32  It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.

33  He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;

      he enables me to stand on the heights.

Personal Application

Lord, I know that your way is perfect. Your word is without flaw. You are my shield when I take refuge in you.

Who is my Rock? It is my God

Who is my Lord? It is God

Thank you for arming me with strength and keeping my way perfect.

Thank you for making my feet like the feet of a deer and causing me to stand on the heights. 

Amen

You Are Not Letting God Down!

Joyful, happy, led by the Holy Spirit,
doing the good work I have been chosen to do.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:8-10 NIV

Do Not Let Sin Get You Down

Do you know Jesus and still feel like you’re letting him down? Does sin weigh you down? DON'T let sin get you down! Jesus loves us and took our sins upon himself and took them to the cross...He loves us and WANTS us to be happy! Your savior knows you intimately and loves you so much...Let go of your sins...give them to him and be happy! You are his workmanship. I am his workmanship. 

Sin Free and Happy

I am not telling you to sin and be happy. We changed the day we asked Christ to come into our lives. We became a new creation, washed clean. Just ask Him to help you make it through the day; to give you strength, AND tell Him you want to serve him. Its as simple as, Help me, Heal me, Use me. He has work for each and every one of us to do. He takes our areas of weakness and turns it into our strength. We can use it to profess to others how we used to be and through the change brought by Christ, how we are now. 

Be Bold - Be an Over the Top Christian 

I get so excited when I start talking about how my life is now. Christ fills my life. Do not be afraid to be an over the top Christian; be bold. I used to watch a woman who would talk about Jesus all the time and think," Wow, she sure talks about Jesus a lot, but she is a nice person." Now I am that woman. Joyful, happy, led by the Holy Spirit, doing the good work I have been chosen to do. I am a 24/7 servant and happy to be that way.