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THURSDAY — Be Strong in Faith
Today’s Big Point: Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1 (New International Version)

     I can remember when I was about 4 years old. Our neighbors had several dogs…Chihuahuas to be exact. I was out in the yard playing and they decided to attack me (my memory is of an attack…it could have been just a lot of barking…I was just 4). As far as I was concerned, it was an entire herd of Chihuahuas, hundreds of them! Not just the 2 or 3 that there actually were. I was scared! Fear? I would’ve been the poster child for fear. I escaped by jumping up on a table in the yard.
     But the Bible tells us to fear not. As a matter of fact, fear not, appears in almost every book of the Bible. (some versions may translate it as do not be afraid or do not fear) Now to a boy of 4 being chased by a herd of Chihuahuas, fear is very real. But why does the Bible tell us to “fear not” so many times? Why is that a theme throughout the Old and the New Testament?
     We certainly have many things to fear in our lives…or do we? Maybe God is simply trying to tell us that even in life when we are being chased by a herd of Chihuahuas, fear not…for He is with us.

Remember
The opposite of fear is FAITH!

READ…What does the Bible say?
Isaiah 41:10 (New International Version)
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Psalm 23:4 (New International Version)
Even though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Ruth 3:11a (New International Version)
And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid.

THINK…Find the answers
In both Isaiah 41:10 and Psalm 23:4 we are told not to fear. List the reasons we are given to not be afraid.

LIVE…What will you do now?
     Perhaps we see failures and unresolved issues in our lives and we wonder what the purpose or meaning of our lives is all about. Many try to escape this way of thinking by keeping busy. As Christians, when we start thinking this way and questioning God, it gives us even more concern. We start to struggle deeply with our faith. Is God really there when life falls apart? How can these things happen to me? Is my faith real? Has He walked away from me? If He is here, if He is sovereign, and if He cares, won’t we see a pattern, purpose and direction in our lives?
     Rather our lives seem to be a tangled mess, a tangle of unrelated colors, loose ends and unraveled knots.
     This is the tension that Naomi dealt with—the struggle which she faced and how she dealt with this struggle. It may help some of us to deal with some of the struggles and questions we are facing. Fear not. Be strong in faith. For most of us, we have one or two areas in our lives where we need to keep telling ourselves that God is in control. God has a plan; however, fear often creeps back into the situation and we lose faith.

Write out that area(s) in your life that you want to rid of fear and strengthen with faith (being careful that you do not include an outcome YOU want…just the situation).

PRAY…God, What do You want me to know & do?
Throughout the book of Ruth, we see three people who truly had no fear, they simply put their faith in God first and allowed Him to work out the situation. No matter what the outcome may be…because we can’t always see it…we should have faith that God has a plan. And His plan is always the best. We all have areas in our lives where we should put our faith before our fears. As you pray today, ask God to help you take away the fear that you wrote in the LIVE section. Ask Him to guide you through your valleys of fear and to quiet your heart because sometimes, He talks to us in whispers.

Daily Bible Reading Commentary—Luke 13
13:1 In ancient Judaism and in our culture today, we all wonder why someone was hit with one misfortune or another. For some reason, we like to believe that bad things happen to people for a reason. However, Jesus squashes the validity of that flawed reasoning. Pilate was at the feast to keep order because of conflicts Jewish community had with the Galilean pilgrims.
13:6-9 The barren fruit tree represents those who say they believe in God, but their lives bear no fruit. The judgment “Cut it down” is similar to God’s judgment on those whose hearts are not wholly His, yet on the outside, they proclaim to be Christians. The gardener symbolizes Jesus, our intercessor, who came to give new life and infiltrate the unproductive heart so that it can bear fruit.
13:10-13 Previous translations used the phrase “Woman, thou art loosed.” The word “loose” describes the removal of a spinal curvature as well as being used to describe being free from a demon’s grip.
13:18-21 A mustard seed is a little thing with the potential to be something huge! Yeast granules are miniscule, yet their potential to expand and grow is multi-fold. These verses remind us of the 25 or so “core group” of people who started CedarCreek Church that has now grown to over 8,000 regular attendees with three campuses across NW Ohio – and more to come. While that core group was small, they trusted God and acted in faith, and it was Jesus who provided the increase!