Don’t Be Dismayed
When I wrote this in 2014, I had no idea how much worse things would be in 2020. We’ve been dealing with the coronavirus shutdown, rioting in many of our cities, hatred, deceit, and those who want to make it legal nationwide to abort children even up until the moment of birth. The message is still the same though – We don’t have to be dismayed.
It’s Easy to Feel Dismayed
It doesn’t take long when watching the news to sense feelings of dismay creeping into your mind. Dismay is that sense of your courage disappearing and doubts and fears taking over your thoughts. We hear of natural disasters, wars, crime, new viruses that are spreading all over and of radical terrorists who are beheading, raping, and kidnapping Christians, and it can all seem overwhelming!
When dismay takes over, you are full of fear and anxiety. God does not want us to live in fear and distress. Instead He tells us in Isaiah 41:10 that we should not fear, for He is with us. We should not be dismayed because He promises to strengthen, help, and uphold us. Meditating on how our mighty God is actually surrounding us, guarding us, and taking care of us. is a way to replace fear with faith. We can replace dismay with His joy.
We are In the End Times
There are many prophetic voices being raised during this time with warnings that the world is about to enter into economic ruin, an increase of cataclysmic disasters, and terrorist attacks. This is because people and nations are rejecting God and His commandments. People are calling evil good and good evil. We cannot continue in this downhill decline without facing judgment.
As Christians, it’s easy to become dismayed as we think about what our future might hold before Jesus comes to take us off the earth. Things seem to be quickly moving toward the Great Tribulation. It is very important for us to dig into the promises of God and hold onto Him and His Word during these tough times. He will show Himself to be strong in our lives when we are fully devoted to Him.
Do We Need to Repent?
If we have only been half following Jesus, it’s time to repent and to allow Him to totally control our lives. If we have allowed other people or things to become idolized in our lives, it’s time to let go of them and allow Jesus to be Lord of our lives. Only then can we claim the wonderful promises of God and see His hand of mercy and deliverance.
Fear Not. God is with You.
God does not promise an easy road of life for us to walk. But He promises to be with us and in us when we are truly yielded to Him. As evil increases in the world, we must allow Him to shine His light in and through us so that we can by used by Him to draw others to Christ. We can be liberated inside, in spite of persecution that we may go through. Let’s allow God to prepare us for whatever is to come and trust Him to help us and strengthen us in times of trouble.
Will we be like our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world who refuse to deny Christ?
These Christians suffer, yet refuse to give up in dismay. God is their strength in their time of need.
