Fear Not!

Luke 1:³⁰ “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favour with God!”

Sometimes, when God says to you, I am with you, what grips your heart is fear. And you are like if You are with me then prove it. Look at my situation, and You are saying that You are with me? But God is saying to you again today, ‘Do not be afraid, I am with you’. So, do not be afraid my brother, do not be afraid my sister. And I am saying to you today, do not be afraid for you have found favour with God in the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

Luke 1:^{31-32, &34} “You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High… Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” Mary asked a question; how can these things be? One thing about walking with God, is that when you are perplexed, confused, or disturbed, you can ask questions. It is okay to ask God questions. God is not afraid of your questions. Mary asked, how can these things be, and the angel just explained what was going to happen. Mary was thinking about the natural process of conception. ‘I am a virgin; I have not known any man’. The angel must have said, ‘Of course, we know that which is why we came to you.

And he went on to say what was going to happen. Luke 1:^{35 & 38} “The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God… Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” (emphasis added). May everything God has said about you come true in the Mighty Name of Jesus. May everything Heaven has declared about you and your destiny come true in the Name of Jesus. The answer God gave Mary did not line up with what Mary had in mind. And therein lies the struggle for control for many of us, because when the things that are playing out in our lives do not align with the image of our lives that we have in our mind, we struggle.

And the reason we struggle is because we feel we are losing control. For instance, we have planned A, but B happens. You go into a project thinking C will happen, but D happens. You enter the university thinking A will happen, but B happens and so you are confused, perplexed, and confounded. And therein lies the struggle for control. Control gives us a false sense of being in charge, and when things appear to take us out of control, we struggle.

Prayer: Father, I will not be afraid because You are with me. I surrender control to You, my Father, lead me along the best pathway for my life, in Jesus Name. Amen!