Devotion Booklets for Seasons of the Church Year Lent 2018 | Page 29

Give Up a Sense of Security
Friday, March 9th
Psalm 112:1,6-8
Do you have alethephobia (the fear of hearing bad news)? Do you cringe every time you get an oil
change because you expect your mechanic to give you a long list of repairs nee ded for your car? Do you
dread going to the doctor because you’re afraid of what your doctor might say? Do you fear telling your
loved one how you really feel because of how your loved one might react?
The temptation is real, to fear bad news, because so often, bad news can shake us right to the core.
When the phone rings and we hear, “Mom just died,” or when the doctor comes in and we hear, “It’s
cancer,” or after years of a struggling marriage, we hear a spouse say, “I’m leaving you”…bad news can
destroy any sense of security we have in this life.
So what does God say? Give up your sense of security. Don’t allow your heart to anchor its security in
the things or the people of this life. For if you do, they will fail you, and you’ll carry this alethephobia
wherever you go. Instead, in Psalm 112, God says, “Blessed is the one who fears and trusts in the LORD,
who finds delight in him and his commands. He will never be shaken, he will have no fear of bad news,
his heart is secure, he will have no fear.”
The only true sense of security one can have in this life is the security that we find in the God of the
Bible. For if you examine God’s track record, if you look at his relentless desire to save you, if you scroll
through the pages of Scripture, this is what you see: A God who was willing to give up his own Son, a
Savior who was willing to give up his own life, all for a sinner like me. And when through the eyes of
faith you know that to be true, here’s the only conclusion one can logically come to: God loves me. God
has saved me. Heaven is my home, and God won’t rest until he brings safely there. But this place isn’t
heaven. This life won’t be perfect. I may lose money, I may lose my health, my loved ones may die. But
in the grand scheme of life, that is all ok. For my security does not rest in the things and the people of
this life. My security rests firmly in my loving God.
Prayer: Lord God, may you continue to be my refuge and strength. Amen.
Activity: Describe one piece of bad news that you’ve received this week. Explain how your security in
Christ gives you confidence in the face of this bad news.
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