The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid? 

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

*This verse was shared with me by a good friend yesterday. If you all can, please keep my family in prayer, as I lost my employment this past week. I was let go without notice or pay.

We will need help paying for the ongoing maintenance of the website and finishing off the design. We are looking to raise $5,000 total. (If everyone gave a monthly recurring gift of $5, we would hit our goal.) Gifts on the website are tax deductible, as we are a 501(c)3.*

What I have found in life is that no matter the circumstances, God and his people are always faithful. As we (my wife, Cherish, and I) wrestled with multiple challenges over the past 6 months or so (some I believe were likely spiritual attacks), we have found God continues to show up and walk with us.  These challenges include marriage challenges, ministry challenges, and most recently, employment loss.  Some of you have experienced far more difficult hardships in life.  

As we walked through the challenges and sought the Lord’s heart in a real way, confessing our sins and seeking his deliverance, he has shown up time and again.  We also believe he will provide for us in the employment area too.

One of the things I tried to focus on was to yield to God and his plans in the midst of the challenge. Too many times in my past I would try to either fix things or react in anger or frustration when unfair or challenging times presented themselves. This time, I focused on letting God’s game plan play out.

Asking good questions that hit our hearts is a key to victory in challenges. David, the Psalmist here, asks two good questions (my paraphrase), with the answers written right before them: 1) Whom shall I fear? What does this mean for me that God is my light and my salvation? It means I can refill my hope and joy reserves every day because I have God’s Spirit in my heart and heaven as my eternal destination. It also means that in my attitudes and conduct, I can be a brilliantly bright person in all situations, even intense hardships. And I don’t need to fear anyone!  2) Whom shall I be afraid of?  When people try to steal, rob, and destroy what I have built, I need not be afraid. The Lord is my Stronghold, he anchors the ship of my life. He gives through his people, and he restores with his mighty hand.  And he will merit out justice for those who have wronged me. I love this passage in ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭4‬: “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

The more we start our days fixing our minds on Jesus, God’s Word, The Lord’s Prayer and following his commands, the more peace of mind follows. This is not dependent on our circumstances. We rely on and stay tapped into the vine.

I love these verses in Colossians that talking about being hidden in Christ. I am fully protected!

Lord, help me to be a good follower and to seek your help and the help of your people, when it is needed. I trust you to provide. I am waiting on you to provide the good things we need right now!