Don’t be afraid!
"Even when I walk through the dark valley of death I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You welcome me as a guest, anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings" (Psalm 23:4-5)
Most people are currently living in fear. You should not because God is perfectly in control. He knew that this problem would come and had already made a way for your escape. Yes, he said that he will use the same problem to design an escape route for us. You will come out of this stronger and better. Sure, you are not dying now. No way! We will live to tell the story. Our end has not come! One of the most devastating weapons the enemy uses against us is the spirit of fear. Like I said before, we will hear and see these things, but they shall not come to us. Please be careful because once the enemy succeeds in putting fear in you, then it is only a matter of time before you are defeated. Fear is the feeling caused by possibility of danger or evil. That is, when you begin to anticipate that things might not go in your favour or that there is an imminent harm coming your way. When fear comes, there is always that feeling of disorganisation, disorientation, and destabilisation. There are so many things that make people to be afraid: fear of the future, fear of the unknown, fear of the enemy and evil, fear of failure, etc. And today, people are so afraid of this killer virus – COVID- 19.
So, there are enough reasons to make everybody afraid today. But what we want to say here is that God wants us to live above this natural negative instinct. With the reports and numbers coming out every second there is fear everywhere. Now, I speak to you not to be afraid no matter the situation. He is with us. Yes, this looks difficult but it is attainable. How? Fear is the opposite of faith, and anybody that will walk with God must walk by faith. And what does that mean? What it means is that, though there could be natural signs pointing to harm, danger or evil, you must look beyond them to see the ability, grace, power and sovereignty of God. This is also why the bible variously told us that it is impossible to please God without faith. That is, when fear is saying that you will die, faith says you will live. When fear is saying you could get the virus, faith is say that God will protect and heal you. When fear is saying that you will not have children, faith is saying that you will have many of them. When fear is saying that you will not survive that surgical operation, faith is saying that you are healed. When fear is saying that you will not amount to anything in this life, faith is saying that you will be a great man/woman. When fear is saying that you will not serve God faithfully, faith is saying that you will even become a pillar in his house. Faith is the opposite of fear. Faith is seeing a thing the way God sees it. Faith is depending hundred percent on the word of God. Faith is superior to fear. And in the spiritual ream faith rules, while most of the things we fear do not actually exist.
Now, let's go back to our main text in Psalm 23. This is a Psalm of David. Who is David? He was the king of Israel. A great man and a renowned warrior. He was the person that God said was a man after his heart. David from his tender age knew what battle, danger, trouble, disappointment, betrayal, ambush meant. From his childhood he fought until old age. He had met death face to face on many occasions, and God helped him to overcome. So, David is qualified by any standards to talk about fear, courage and deliverance, hence, his telling us in this psalm that even if he walks through the valley of death, he would not fear any evil. He has seen valleys of death. He had seen great dangers and evils. He had also seen afflictions and the LORD delivered him from them all. In his own words, he said it is “walking through the valley of death." Yes, there could be valley of death. But you will walk through it. It does not stay permanently, and it will not consume you. Hard situations will always come and go. They can never remain forever. This pandemic is already going away in Jesus name!
If you want to be successful as a Christian, you must be fearless and courageous. God said that he has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power. God does not walk with the fearful. In fact, in the book of Revelation, he even said that the fearful will go to hell. God wants us to operate on the same plain with him - the plain of the supernatural. On this plain, you operate by faith. You believe all things, even when available natural, medical facts are saying the contrary. You see beyond the human senses. At the supernatural plain you rule over the situations. You operate as a lord. Lord over natural Circumstances. This is not to say that things that should ordinary make you to be afraid will not come, they will. But you will refuse to succumb. Why? Because you always have the assurance that His "rod and staff" will protect you. And that they will never fail. This is the level that God wants you to operate now. Nothing, no situation in this life should intimidate you.
You must always remember that every situation will come and pass. No matter how terrible it might look. It is temporal. The only thing that is permanent is the promises of God. For they remain from generations to generations. When you realise this, nothing will make you afraid again. In this present global confusion God is not just coming to save you, but will also promote you. Look at what He said in Psalm 91:14-15, "I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call me, I will answer, I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue them and honor them." God bless you!
Rev Gabriel Agbo is the Assemblies of God and the author of the book Power of Midnight Prayer Tel: 08037113283 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.authorsden.com/pastorgabrielnagbo