I Will Not Be Afraid
How does fear affect you?
Verse of the Day
‘Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.’
Today’s Devotional
When I was researching this verse, all of the commentaries use the translations that say “walk through the valley of the shadow of death”. There are some interesting thoughts about that verbiage. In all the translations that I have read, there is an assumption that we WILL walk through dark times and places.
But what can the darkest valley do to us? Physical darkness, or lack of light, cannot actually hurt us. Especially when we are just passing through, as this verse implies. We are simply walking through it, not setting up camp to live there. Being in a valley means that we are in a low spot. Being in a dark valley might encourage fear. But being in a place that is full of shadows cannot actually harm us. Charles Spurgeon writes: “Death in its substance has been removed, and only the shadow of it remains…. Nobody is afraid of a shadow, for a shadow cannot stop a man’s pathway even for a moment. The shadow of a dog cannot bite; the shadow of a sword cannot kill; the shadow of death cannot destroy us.”
No matter where we are, we have the option to declare that “we will not be afraid.” We can declare this over ourselves even if we do not feel it to be true. We can say it over and over until it becomes true. The banishment of our fear can become our truth because God is with us, even in the darkest of places. Enduringword.com states: “Even in a fearful place, the presence of the shepherd banished the fear of evil. We might say that the shepherd’s presence did not eliminate the presence of evil, but certainly the fear of evil.”
As we are walking through these dark places, and as God Himself is present with us, we may need some course correction. When things are dark, we don’t always know where to step. Hence the need for a rod and a staff. There is some debate among scholars as to whether or not the rod and staff refer to two different instruments of correction, or one instrument used in two way, Either way, there seems to be agreement that the rod was used for protection, to ward off predators, and the staff was used as a guide to keep the sheep on the correct course.
How beautiful that God is declaring His presence with us in dark times and dark places. God’s care and concern for us is so great that He is willing to protect us and guide us. One last interesting note: the staff, used to guide the sheep, was always intended to be used gently. At least at first. If a sheep took gentle correction well, then the staff was never an object of punishment. If the sheep did not heed the gentle warnings, the intensity of correction had to be increased in order to keep the sheep safe.
May we be people who are aware of God’s presence with us in dark places. May we be willing to speak away our fear due to the presence of God. And may we always be willing to heed gentle correction.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Are you in a dark valley now? Or have you ever been?
How can you ask God to remind you of His presence today?
How does fear affect you?
How can you declare your lack of fear and your trust in God today?
How can you heed gentle correction? Are you willing to ask God to make you more teachable?