“Tell him to stop worrying. Tell him he doesn’t need to fear the fierce anger of those two burned-out embers” (Isaiah 7:4).

What is keeping you up at night? What are you praying about, and are those prayers mixed with and motivated by worry?

Often our fears, real as they appear to be, are mere phantoms. The King of Judah trembled at the threat imposed upon him by two kings who had allied themselves against him. God sent Isaiah to encourage King Ahaz to stop worrying.

King Ahaz had the Lord on his side to help him against these threats, but if his faith wasn’t firmly established on the Lord’s power – if his fear caused him to seek help from someone other than God Himself – he was doomed, bound to the very circumstances that were frightening him.

“Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm.” Isaiah 7:9b

Ask yourself today, “Where is my faith?” Are God’s promises just lofty yet impotent sentiments? Are they hyperbole, exaggerated statements to make a point? Or are we meant to base our life on them, live by them, and respond to situations according to them?

If we serve and feed our fears where will that take us? On the other hand, if we choose to believe God’s Word as though it were true (because it is), where will He take us?

Is worrying your default? Worry is an occupation that yields no reward, no consolation, and certainly no victory. Ready to rid yourself of worry? Pray in faith this plain and simple prayer with us.

Father,

The worries I face are grounded in real-life circumstances that are daunting, but I choose to stop worrying as You have instructed me to do. I lay each worry I have owned at Your feet one by one…

You make roads through the Red Sea. There is no end to the grace You have for me in this circumstance I’m in today, so I will trust in You. I will not fear, fret, or worry any longer.

I will take charge of these rogue thoughts – they would make sense if I didn’t have You, but I do have You, my God who is my great Abba. You have promised to never leave me or forsake me. I will walk with You through this situation worry-free, for You are bigger than any challenge I am facing.

In Jesus’ Name,
Amen!

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