Be Not Afraid

"Surely the righteous will never be shaken;
   they will be remembered forever.
⁷ They will have no fear of bad news;
   their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD."  Psalm 112:6,7

I read Psalm 112 yesterday, and had to go back today and read these verses again, because verse seven in particular made me smile.

As Christians, I think that one way we show the fruit we are growing is by our reaction to those moments of bad news.  These verses specifically tells us that the righteous will have no fear of bad news.  They will take it as it comes, and their steadfast hearts will trust in God completely. 

I'm certainly not there yet.  At the first glimmer of bad news, my brain gets into gear and I logically spend time thinking about the bad news- Andy being laid off would be one instance of bad news.  Immediately I start calculating bills and trying to figure out with my own mind where money could come from to meet all our needs.  I spend time there, in the natural, thinking about how we can persevered and muddle through the situation.  And then I pray about it.  I talk to God about it and ask for his help.  I ask Him to help guide us through the season ahead, and that's all well and good, but I think I could do better.

Because I think that if my first reaction to bad news was to pray about it, we'd have a whole lot less stress in our lives.  If I turned to God as the very first thing upon the receipt of bad news, I could ask Him to help shape my thought processes, to help guide us in the path we are to take during this season of the uncertain.  I think that maybe our struggles could be a tad less of a struggle if the first response was turning to God instead of the second or third response.

I keep coming back to that last line, "their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord" and I can't help but linger on and love the use of the word steadfast.  When I think of steadfast, I think of something really, and truly important.  I think of a candle in the window on a snow covered night, steadfastly providing a beacon to those on the outside.  I think of a lighthouse- they are steadfast no matter the weather, always a guiding beacon for the ships at sea.  I think of a ship, in days gone by, trying to cross an Atlantic Ocean with a cargo full of immigrants, determined to reach the shores of the new world.  Thinking on the word steadfast fills my heart with hope and with determination.

I think of a girl, lost in the woods, with nothing but a small lamp to guide her way, and rather than panic, she steadfastly maintains her pace in one direction, determined to find her way out of the woods.  She is determined, she is steadfast. 

No matter what may come at us, we will be steadfast and we will trust in the Lord.  We will trust that He holds us in the palm of His hand and will guide us in the right direction we need to go.  We will stay on course, and we will not be afraid.  We will put one foot in front of the other, and where our heart leads, we will follow.  Because our heart belongs to Jesus, and He most certainly will not lead us astray.  He will guide us to the very answers to our problems, and He will keep us safe from ALL harm along the way.