Grace For Today

Psalm 34:4 “I sought the Lord and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears”  

I have never been able to dive headfirst into a pool or any body of water. Growing up I have been too scared to jump into water without holding my nostrils closed. I was jealous of the other kids that could fearlessly jump in without holding their nose – how did they perfect this task that was impossible to me? I tried and failed and couldn’t bring myself to try again. The feeling of water going up my nose was enough to keep me from pursuing the next level of swimming – I allowed the uncomfortable to hinder my abilities.  

To be transparent, this is a fear that I still struggle with to this day. I learned how to do it so I could say that I could do it but when push comes to shove and I am jumping into water, I go back to the way I trust the most. I choose the way to jump in that has caused me the least amount of struggle or fear – I choose what is most comfortable. Even knowing that I can do it now, the fear of the uncomfortable always wins.  

Starting this blog is similar to jumping headfirst into water – there are more unknowns than sure things. The enemy will have you focus on the doubt “Will this work out?” “Will I look stupid doing this?” “What will people think?” “Is this going to fail?”. The enemy thrives in the uncomfortable feeling – he knows how debilitating it can be so he makes it seem so large and unbearable that we can’t take our focus off of it. To be transparent, I listened to the voice of the enemy for longer than I should have. We can all relate to that – taking a step of faith is not easy, that’s why it requires faith. It goes against our flesh to jump headfirst into what is making us uncomfortable – that’s why it is so hard to take that first step, especially if you feel like you are doing it alone. But we have a loving father that provides us with everything we need to take on the day. Faith in God’s hand is what empowers us through the pain, the discomfort, the fear.  

I began to believe in the passion that God placed on my heart – I chose to speak life into it, I decided that this passion was not here by accident. I started to focus on meditating on the Lord’s word which brought me to Psalm 34:4 one of the first scriptures I ever memorized “I sought the Lord and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.” This scripture helped me strip away the discomfort that the enemy was seeping into my being without me realizing. The Lord knows your fears, he hears your cries. But you need to cry out to him to let him in. I let him into my passion of writing, I put my fears and worries at his feet and he gave me the courage to take the first step. And then he gave me a little more courage to take the second, and then the third and so forth.  

Jumping headfirst is scary, terrifying if I could be honest. But when you begin inviting God into your fears you start to operate not on your own strength, but his. What was once scary is still scary, but you aren’t as intimidated anymore because you have the strongest protector with you.  

What is it that God is calling you to that you are avoiding due to fear? What is it that you need to lay at his feet and let him fill you with his peace and comfort?  

I praise God for his faithfulness to me amidst my fear and doubt. I thank the Lord for the strength and life he has poured into me to start this journey. And I thank him for bringing me you, to read and be a part of this as well!