It is said that everyone is afraid of SOMETHING. And what those fears are may vary less from person to person than you might think.
If you’ve ever wondered if it is possible to live a life that is truly untroubled and fear free, you’re going to love our time together today.
One thing you never need to be afraid of is “Mornings with Bishop Robert.” Welcome; I’m glad you’ve decided to drop by this morning.. My goal is to introduce people to the Jesus they never knew, and help them get to know Him and His word personally – and better ! If our time together today speaks to your heart, then let me invite you to like, subscribe and share it with a friend!
If you are afraid of public speaking, you’re not alone. It’s actually one of the most common fears. Truth be told, it’s really not about the speaking for most folks, but it’s actually a fear that you’ll make a fool of yourself when you’re the de facto center of attention.
Snakes are another common item on the fear list. I’ve seen a video of a king cobra that was dying of thirst and decided to approach a person in hopes he would give it a drink of water. It was one of those “animals asking people for help” videos. The question I couldn’t get past was “When a cobra is approaching, who says to themselves, ‘Gee, I wonder if it’s just thirsty.'” My rule of thumb is this — If it scares Indiana Jones, that’s enough for me!!! Besides, human interactions with snakes haven’t gone well since the Garden of Eden.
Flying actually tops the list of fears for many, many people. (Probably folks who don’t see many snakes.) I know people who cannot sit in a window seat if they fly. I know people who have flown, had a wonderful experience, and STILL say they’ll never fly again. Go figure. One thing that never made sense to me was that airlines have made seat cushions double as flotation devices. I always giggle a bit when the flight attendant tells us that, in the event of a “water landing,” I can hug the seat cushion to my chest after exiting the aircraft. Trust me, if the plane I’m in crashes into the ocean, no one is going to want to TOUCH what I was sitting on, let alone hug it to their chest!
Today’s verse says DON’T LET YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED. TRUST IN GOD.
The first lesson I’d like us to draw from that verse is that it is a directive from Jesus. He’s the one who says DON’T LET YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED. Do you know why that’s important? Because when Jesus tells you to do something, contained within the instruction is the very power we need to do whatever it was He said.
Think about the apostles surrounded by a crowd of thousands and thousands of hungry people. They suggest to Jesus that He send the people away into the surrounding villages so they can buy food. Jesus suggests the impossible – “You give them something to eat.” (Great idea, Jesus; let me just ask the guys which one of them packed dinner for ten thousand.) All they had was a kid’s sack lunch; five small loaves of bread and a couple of smoked fish. But when Jesus had said “You give them something to eat” the provision was in the obedience. Not only did everyone get all the food they wanted, but there were a dozen baskets of leftovers!
We see the same lesson being repeated over and over again. Peter (and everyone else on the boat, by the way) is scared spitless when he sees a ghost walking on the Sea of Galilee. When the ghost claims to be Jesus He’s still too far away to be seen clearly in the pre-dawn mists, so Peter says, “Lord, if it’s You, tell me to come to You on the water.” Peter understood that if a ghost was lying to him about his identity, he would be going for a swim. But if JESUS had told him to come, then contained within the invitation was the very power he needed to walk on water.
Jesus’ commands have power. Lazarus, come forth. Be clean. Stand up. Little girl, I say to you, arise. I could go on and on and on; but you get the picture.
So Jesus tells us DON’T LET YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED. TRUST IN GOD.
And you and I, like Peter, have a choice to make. If Jesus said it, then contained within the instruction is the very power we need to do whatever it was He said. And He said DON’T LET YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED. TRUST IN GOD. So that means two things.
First, based upon His instruction, I CAN DECIDE that I will not let my heart be troubled. I can! Now if I prefer to be upset, concerned, have sleepless nights and worry myself to death – I can decide to do THAT, too; but I don’t have to. The power to NOT have my heart be troubled is in my hands. Jesus put it there with His command.
Second, again based upon His instruction, I CAN DECIDE to trust in God. If I make that choice, then I will have an untroubled heart.
It all comes down to faith. Either Jesus is who He says He is and His commands have power; or He’s not. Isaiah the prophet knew whereof he spoke when he said to God, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” Yes, He does. Like everything else, He gives us the grace to obey. It’s never our power and strength, it is always His. But we have to make the choice. Are we going to step out in obedience and DO what He commands? We CAN, because contained within His command is the very power we need to obey; even if the situation we face is not humanly possible.
And if we choose to obey, His grace and strength enable us. His blessings pour forth upon us. His peace will fill us. When we feel overwhelmed, He reminds us that His grace is sufficient and His power is made perfect in our weakness. Whatever we face, He will face with us. Whatever the trial, He will enable our victory. When the night is dark, He is our light. When all seems hopeless, He gives more hope.
And there is one simple key to unlock everyone of those promises — DON’T LET YOUR HEARTS BE TROUBLED. TRUST IN GOD.
