Be Not Afraid!

Psalm 27:1

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?

John Wesley once said that he wanted just a few men who feared nothing but sin and loved nothing but God.  Yesterday’s verse was for a day of fearing sin and “getting right with God” as our Fundamentalist friends might say.  Today’s verse is to show us the other side of the coin: namely, if God is for us, who can be against us?  If we really and truly believe that God is watching over us and is guarding us, then nothing, not even death, is ultimately going to be a problem for us.  That does not mean that Christians can expect a pain-free life.  We are assured that both pain and death are part of the Christian life, as they were a part of Christ’s life.  But these things cannot conquer us, just as they could not conquer Jesus.  Pain only makes us sharers in his suffering and co-laborers for his people.  Death only ushers us into heaven where death has no more power.  So dwell in God’s stronghold today and, as the Holy Father says, “Be not afraid.”

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Mark P. Shea is a popular Catholic writer and speaker. The author of numerous books, his most recent work is The Work of Mercy (Servant) and The Heart of Catholic Prayer (Our Sunday Visitor). Mark contributes numerous articles to many magazines, including his popular column “Connecting the Dots” for the National Catholic Register. Mark is known nationally for his one minute “Words of Encouragement” on Catholic radio. He also maintains the Catholic and Enjoying It blog and regularly blogs for National Catholic Register. He lives in Washington state with his wife, Janet, and their four sons.

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