“The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live.” (Genesis 26:2)
As a young man, Abraham battled a fear of famine. How interesting that he would then have to face that fear in the land of milk and honey that God had given to him. What did he do in the face of his fear? He ran. “Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land.” (Genesis 12:10) Abraham put his faith in the material world found in Egypt, rather than put his faith in God.
Abraham’s son Isaac had to face famine as well. He was fearful, just as his father had been. He turned to the King of the Philistines for help. But God spoke to him, and told him not to go to Egypt, but rather to live where He told him to live. (Genesis 26:6) God was saying, “Put your trust in me.”
That’s how we turn our fears into fuel to make life better. We don’t run away from our fears. We don’t put our trust in people, places or things. We put our trust and faith in God. We listen for God’s guidance. Before we got into recovery, we had a hard time listening to anyone’s guidance, let alone God’s. But now, we know and trust God to take us exactly where we need to go. We know to not put our trust in our own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5-6)
God made an amazing promise to Abraham: “Do not be afraid, Abraham. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” (Genesis 15:1) We do not have to be afraid for God is our shield, and our reward for trusting in Him is exceedingly great. Turn your fears into fuel for a better life by giving your them over to God.
Today’s Practice: Give your fears over to God. Don’t run from them. Listen to what God says. Trust 100% that God will lead you exactly where you need to go.
