Encouragement - Pt. 6

 

For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries. (Psalm 112:6-8 ESV).

 

Fear is a pretty ordinary human emotion. When we experience it, though, it feels anything but ordinary. It is always a thief coming in the darkness of trial or difficulty stealing away our hope and encouragement. As children, we learn a great deal about fear from our parents. A parent’s fear for the child helps the child learn not to run into the street, that the iron is hot, that the electrical outlet is dangerous, and dozens of other things. However, a parent’s fear may also teach the child that it is scary to go down the slide, to stay with the babysitter, to go to school, or to have a sleepover. In these situations, the parent is often frightened, but they simply don’t want to feel afraid and don’t want the child to experience fear, so, to get rid of unwanted feelings, the message is “don’t do it.” This is a different message from “yes, it’s scary, but you can do it anyway.” This is the message of our reading today.

 

The key is in the middle verse of our selection: his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord (v. 7). It is much like our picture today. I’m sure the dad was encouraging his daughter to jump with a constant message of “come on… I’ve got ya!” Isn’t that the consistent message of God to His people? Whether it was crossing the Red Sea or marching around the walls of Jericho, whether it was at the tomb of Lazarus or the storm threatening to capsize the disciples fishing boat, His encouragement was “come on… I got ya!”

 

I often encourage others with a simple bit of wisdom gleaned both from Scripture and my common experience: Everything that happens to you is by God’s will and for your good. Unfortunately that is much easier said than done. Most of the time I am met with a curious stare and the conjunction, “But…” Well, there are no “buts” in the Scripture. God’s promise to produce good in our lives is without exception and void of prerequisites. As you stand at the precipice of any challenge, would you simply look for the hands of God outstretched to catch you? Would you rest in the knowledge that God will not lead you anywhere where He cannot save you? And, by the way, the exhilaration of the jump into His arms is unmatched. You will not find any more pleasurable experience in life.