Be Strong and Courageous  - I Will Not Be Afraid!: God is My Rock and Protector, Part 2

Have you ever been genuinely astonished by something? Maybe it's a beautiful sunrise or a sky full of stars on a clear night.

You witnessed something that just took your breath away. Well, today we're going to learn what it means to behold the beauty of the Lord and how to get perspective and actually experience God's beauty in your everyday life. You don't want to miss it. Chip's our Bible teacher for this international teaching and discipleship ministry focused on helping Christians live like Christians. Well, in this program, Chip will continue where he left off in our series, Be Strong and Courageous, with part two of his talk, I Will Not Be Afraid. Today he'll finish walking through Psalm 27 and explain how praising and worshiping God can empower us to conquer our fears. But before he gets going, let me encourage you to keep listening after this message as Chip shares a few additional thoughts that will be really impactful for you.

Don't miss it. Okay, if you have a Bible, go to Psalm 27, verse 5, as Chip dives right back into the remainder of his talk. For the day in trouble, he will conceal me in his tabernacle. In the secret place of his tent, he will hide me. He will lift me up on a rock. And now my head will be lifted above my enemies around me. And I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy.

I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to my God. David is a worshiper. David spends time with God, not to get something from God. David spends time with God to just be with him, to behold him, his beauty or his delightfulness. David finds there's times where he just wants to hang out, and he just wants to know God's ways and begin to ponder. Sometimes I, like you I'm sure, lose perspective. I don't feel very close to God. I want to pray, but I can't get going. And then I think of a little tiny book that I read a chapter of like every day for about 10 years, and then I read the book once a month for about the next 10 years called The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W.

Tozer. Now that may sound really good, but I mean the chapters are like two or three pages. They're very short and they're very deep, but they're on the attributes of God. And when I get kind of stuck, and I think we all do, what I realize is my problems are getting bigger and bigger, my focus is getting more and more inward, and my God is getting smaller and smaller.

And so I will just begin as I think through what I learned from that book. Oh Lord, thank you that you are good, that you find happiness in blessing me. You are for me.

I live under a sky that's friendly. You long to do good in my life and through my life. Lord, I thank you at this moment. You're all powerful.

You can do anything you want. Lord, I thank you that you see everything, that you're all knowing. Lord, I thank you. I just want to praise you that you're compassionate. And I don't know where you're at in your life. I don't know what you fear. I don't know what your struggles are.

I know there's a lot of issues out in this world that we're living in. But isn't it like mind-bogglingly wonderful to think Jesus, the one who spoke the world into existence, the one who created everything visible and invisible in heaven and on earth, the one who's the head of the church, he's your friend if you're a follower of him. And what we get is the Old Testament version of this. He says to behold the beauty of the Lord, to meditate in his temple. And then the reason this intimate knowledge of God's character and concern for David flows from his personal worship, what it does, it transforms his perspective. Verse 5, I read it, but notice the little word at the beginning of verse 5. Because after he's been with God, after he steps back and sees, oh, these are little battles and I'm a little person and you're over it all. And then he says, for in the day of trouble, he'll conceal me in his tabernacle. It's talking about a place of worship. In the secret place of his tent, he'll hide me. In other words, when he refers to the tent or the tabernacle, I mean, David, this is a metaphor. He's running for his life, most of his life. And the temple wasn't even built in this time.

He raised money for it, but his son Solomon builds it. So these are metaphors to say, the way God's going to hide me isn't his presence. He's my shelter. I'm running to him. I don't know what to do.

Yes, I am afraid. I don't really get it. I look out there, fear grips me. I'm going to run to him and when I run to him, his presence gives me perspective.

It doesn't mean he takes all my problems away, but notice what he does do. He says, I know he'll lift me up and he'll hide me. He'll lift my head above my enemies.

And then he's even projecting into the future. He goes, when God delivers, I want him to know, here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to get back to worshiping. I'm going to offer praise.

I'm going to give him the credit. I'm going to sing. And here's what I can tell you, and this is hard because your emotions won't want to do this, but when you're afraid, if you can shift like David does, you're focused to him and with passion come into his presence. And whether you feel like or not, begin to worship him, his attributes. And there's something about singing and worship that takes the truth of God from your head into your heart and he manifests his presence. I can't tell you how many times, it's usually on Saturday mornings because my weeks are pretty packed and I pray every morning and I read my Bible. But Saturday mornings and often Sunday mornings, it's like, Lord, I'm not a singer, but I privately, I come and I find a spot and I put on worship music and I turn off all the lights and I just put one little candle on and I sing to God. I just sing to him. And initially it was very, very uncomfortable and I sing some songs that are worship songs that I know that declare his greatness and his power and ones when I've really been afraid or when I've struggled, they still really hit home.

I go to some old ones. I've had times where I've been in really dangerous situations and certain songs bring me back to how God delivered. It will completely change your perspective because if you don't, you'll be afraid and then you'll worry. And the tendency, and please don't hear this is wrong, but I think we run to people, we run to medication, we run to a counselor, we run to fix it ourselves, we run to hyperactivity and those things are just a veneer over our fears. So much of our addictions have really nothing to do with shopping or food or cocaine or pornography. They really don't. Those are things that we cover over these deep-seated fears and struggles and insecurities that we're human.

Now, don't hear that it's not good or somehow it's wrong to use medication at the right time in the right way or to go to a counselor or talk to a friend, of course. But what would happen if we, like David, went to God first and worshiped? And then he begins to talk about his future expectations. He says, I believe you're going to deliver me. See, what's happening is his faith is growing.

See, you either live by fear or you live by faith. His faith is growing. You know, by the time he gets down to verse 6, he goes, my head will be lifted up.

That's future tense. Above my enemies, I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of praise. I will sing.

I will sing praises. And then in verses 7 through 10, David shifts from worship and he realizes, you know, I've got some practical problems here, right? I mean, we don't know the context, but we know one context that sounds like it could be this is he's been running for his life and he's out in the wilderness. And he's now, they found out where he is and Saul's got all of his armies.

They're searching everywhere. He's in the back of this cave and, you know, and Saul even walks into the cave and it's just like, I mean, logically speaking, I'm done. I mean, I'm done. There's there's no way out.

There's nowhere to go. If God doesn't blind them and if Saul or some of his men keep coming here, this is it. And then he prays very, very specifically and practically. He says, hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice and be gracious to me and answer me. So he's coming passionately. If you've got your Bible open, circle that little word, because this is not a, oh, dear God, thank you so much.

Would you make everything go better? This is a guy under pressure. This is a guy sort of in the emotional ICU.

This is a guy that's thinking, I don't know if I'm going to make it out of this, humanly speaking. But here's the prayer. Practically, he says, hear, O, again, notice the name. Adonai, Yahweh, Lord God, hear, O Lord, when I cry, circle the word cry. I mean, this is passionate. This is emotional with my voice.

Be gracious to me and answer me. The basis of his prayer, he's going to say, I want you to answer me because, one, I've been obedient in the past. He says, when you did say, seek my face, my heart said to you, Lord, your face I shall seek.

And then he goes on specifically, do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger. So the first basis is, you know, I want you to answer me because when you told me what to do, I was obedient in the past. And second is, please don't forsake me and turn me away. Notice what he says, I'm your servant. This isn't about me. Remember, I serve you.

I'm on your team. I want to fulfill your will. And then finally, notice, he goes on from that and he says in the end of verse nine, do not abandon me or forsake me, O God of my salvation. And then he says, the last basis is, Lord, I want you to know that if you don't help, no one else will either.

And commentators agree and disagree whether this is literal. But David says, for my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me up. You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and we'll continue our series Be Strong and Courageous in just a minute. But quickly, are you looking for a practical way to deepen your prayer time with God? Then stick around after the message as Chip talks about an easy tool we've developed to help you be more intentional in your daily time with Jesus.

You won't want to miss it. Well, with that, here again is Chip. You know, there's times where you find in your life the people that you had hoped would come through for you. Either they can't or they don't.

And you feel absolutely desperate and completely alone. And historically, you know, as I read a bit into this text, he's got nine other brothers. Saul has now declared David to be public enemy number one.

We now know historically that there was a priest that helped David out and Saul found out about it and he killed him and a bunch of other priests. This guy's ruthless. So I can imagine that Saul has gone to Jesse, David's father. Do you know where he's at?

What's going on here? Are you protecting him? I'm thinking, Jesse's thinking, let's see now.

I got one son running for his life. I got a king here that's going kind of crazy. And anyone who disagrees with him, they get killed. I can see where, you know, something, you know, hey, I'm a loyal follower. And I think in David's world, he's all alone. And part of God hearing our prayer and part of us not being afraid is getting vulnerable enough where we really tell it like it is.

And we shared the hurts and the pains of our rejection. And he's praying specifically. I mean, he goes, I need your help and I need your help because here's some reasons. You called me to follow you and I did. You delivered me in the past and I'm your servant.

I don't think I'd be in this mess. I mean, he doesn't quite say it, but I'm your servant. And basically, you know, it's kind of Peter's word to Jesus. You know, in John six, when Jesus has made some hard statements and Jesus says, well, Peter, what about you? You guys going to leave, too?

Like, where would we go? And then he gets down to verses 11 and 12 and he asks for some real specific help. In verse 11, he says, Teach me your ways, O Lord, and lead me in a level path because of my foes.

Do not deliver me over to the desires of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen against me and such they breathe out their violence. So he prays passionately. He prays emotionally. He cries out for God for why he should answer. And then he says, OK, very specific.

This is what I really need. But I want to know your ways in the midst of this. There's a way that you work. It's exactly what Moses prayed in Psalm 103.

The first part is remembering. Bless the Lord on my soul and all that you've done for me. And this one little verse in verse seven says he made known his ways to Moses. His acts to the sons of Israel. All of Israel saw the Red Sea part. All of Israel saw the manna come down.

All of Israel saw the water from the rock. Most of them never trusted because what they got was results and help and miracles. But they didn't get to know the ways.

They didn't get to know the heart of God. And so what he's saying is, I'm afraid, but I don't want this just to be about getting out of this fix. His specific prayer is twofold. One that's deep and long.

And the other is like super, super practical. Teach me your ways, O Lord. And then the practical part, lead me on a level path or basically, how do I get out of here? Do you want me to take a left?

Do you want me to take a right? What specifically do I need to do in this particular situation to not be overcome by these negative emotions of fear and instead to trust you? And then he tells them, this is real. They're violent.

They're going to kill me. And then in verses 13 and 14, we get this tremendous, tremendous picture. He begins to come out of his time of prayer, come out of getting perspective. And after he has said, OK, tough situation, I'm going to declare I will not be afraid. Second, I will remember who you really are. Worship, passionate, focus. Third, I'm going to get on my knees and I'm going to ask very specific things about how to get out of here and also how you can use this to let me know you in a deeper way.

And then what's the result? Verse 13 and 14, the result is that his faith now has blossomed through this experience. Verse 13 says, I would have despaired unless I had, here's the word, believed that I would see the goodness of God in the land of the living. He said, you know, it was impossible. I was tempted to be afraid, just like you, just like me.

That relationship, that circumstance, that money issue, that disease, that problem in my family, the economy, all the things that are happening around the world, you know, the decline in this and the things in the schools. I was tempted to be afraid. But he said, I will not fear. He declared it.

Why? Because the Lord is my light. The Lord is my deliverer.

He's bigger and he's in control and he's all powerful. And I know him and I've been with him and I'm looking at life through his lens instead of this lens. And he says, I would have been in despair, but I believed that in the land of the living, while I'm alive, I'll see your goodness. I'll see your deliverance.

I'll see you work in my life. And then he has a word for you and a word for me. He says, wait for the Lord. Be strong.

Sound familiar? And let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord.

Now, wait is one of those interesting Hebrew words where it's not OK, Lord, I'm waiting. The idea is where's your hope? Where's your confidence?

That's the whole point. Can I encourage you right now, remember when we started our little time together, I said, what are you afraid of? What person, what situation, what future event, what circumstance, what overwhelming world disaster? What are you afraid of personally? And I want you to identify it. And then I want you to say out loud with me right now, I will not fear having been with people a lot. I'm going to tell you that was not very convincing. OK, I mean, I know you're thinking I'm not there. Believe me, I'm kind of there.

Let's try this again. I will not fear. And then just the Lord is my light. And my salvation, whom shall I fear?

And then can I encourage you to this one thing? Seek him. Make time no matter what happens, make time to get into his presence. Worship him and then ask very specifically what you need. And when the fears keep coming, you declare and then you worship and then you ask.

And then are you ready? Then in view of who God is and who you are to him, you act. Doesn't mean you won't feel afraid. Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage is acting in spite of your fear. You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram and the message you just heard. I Will Not Be Afraid God Is My Rock and Protector is from our series Be Strong and Courageous.

Chip will join us in studio to share some insights from today's talk in just a minute. Life is full of intense challenges that can shake our faith and leave us feeling lost. So how can we spiritually ground ourselves and persevere no matter what comes our way? Well, through this new study in the book of Psalms, Chip digs into eight core chapters that will help us overcome the most harmful emotions and feelings we'll face. Don't miss how to handle cynicism, discouragement, injustice, fear, and more.

To catch up on this entire series, listen through the Chip Ingram map or at livingontheedge.org. Well, I'm joined in studio now by Chip, and Chip, you know, I've heard you say before that remembering God's faithfulness in the past empowers us to trust him for even greater things in the future. Now, how have you seen that idea played out in your life? Well, Dave, I say that a lot because I tend to be very futuristic. I tend to be always thinking about what's going to happen next, what do I need to get done.

I'm sort of a productivity nut at times. And what happens when we begin to forget what God's done in the past is we start getting overwhelmed with the present and concerns about all the things that need to happen or might happen in the future. And so one of the things that's been most powerful is taking the time to write down, God, I want to thank you for, God, I want to remember. I recently was in the Dominican Republic and had just, I spoke six times in 24 hours, I met tons of people, my back happened to really hurt, I was overwhelmed, I was fatigued, and all of me was starting to go downhill. I got out my journal and I just started to write out and started listing, God, thanks for letting me get to know Jose and his wife, Wendy. God, thank you for what you did in that second session. God, thank you so much that while I was gone, Teresa sent me this picture and it really encouraged me. And as I did that and wrote it down, wow, my perspective started to change, even better.

I came home and obviously, like all of us, after a trip you get sort of tired and you can be a little irritable. I got out my journal and I read back through the last week or two or three, and remembered how I feel right now just because I'm exhausted is not reality. God has been good, God has been faithful. Tracking God's goodness, blessing the Lord, oh my soul, and forgetting none of his benefits, it is like a power vitamin C to your soul that will help you keep perspective and walk with God. My journal is one of the most important tools in my life, and we've created a journal with some passages and with some tips that I think will really help you do the same. To learn more about our prayer journals, visit LivingOnTheEdge.org or call us at 888-333-6003. These beautiful, compact notebooks have plenty of space for your prayers and personal journaling, along with scripture verses, hymn lyrics, and quotes to encourage you. If you want a more intentional, enriching time with God, this tool will help. For more details about our prayer journals, visit LivingOnTheEdge.org or call 888-333-6003.

App listeners tap Special Offers. Well, with that, here's Chip to share a few final words. Thanks, Dave. I want to loop back to what we talked about in today's message because it's really important. What are you afraid of? What situation? What vague feeling out there?

I want you to name it. See, if you don't name what you're afraid of, you'll never face it. And if you never face it, it'll lodge in the back of your mind, it'll stay in your psyche, and fear is paralyzing. Fear is debilitating. There are times where, as I shared in this message, I become aware that I'm afraid of something that I didn't know I was afraid of. Like, I'm afraid to bring up this subject with someone close to me.

I'm afraid of what might happen in this situation economically. Have you realized how often fear has to do with an if and a then? And it's hypothetical.

It's possible. And out of that, you can just be paralyzed. I've been in a couple situations because of my personality and my arrogance, and especially in my youth, where I got on the wrong side of some people that were way bigger and way stronger, and if there was a fight, I knew I was going to lose. So I always recruited the biggest guy on the basketball team, 6'8 and above, very big, very strong, to kind of be my best buddy, especially in the games if I was running my mouth.

And here's what I always knew. If someone wanted to come after me, they had a 6'8 guy who's a lot bigger and a lot stronger with me. I don't have any 6'8 guy in my corner now. I have the God of the universe. I have the Holy Spirit. I've got the living Christ who's committed to me. I'm waiting on Him.

I'm hoping in Him. I don't have to be afraid, and neither do you. Wow, thanks for that powerful image, Chip. As we wrap up this program, Living on the Edge depends on listeners like you to help us continue encouraging Christians to live like Christians. So would you consider becoming a monthly partner to help others benefit from this ministry? You can set up a recurring donation at livingontheedge.org or by calling 888-333-6003. That's 888-333-6003, or visit livingontheedge.org. App listeners, tap donate. And thanks for doing whatever the Lord leads you to do. Well, from all of us here, I'm Dave Drouie, thanking you for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge, and I hope you'll join us next time. .