“My son, let them not depart from your eyes—
Keep sound wisdom and discretion;
So they will be life to your soul
And grace to your neck.
Then you will walk safely in your way,
And your foot will not stumble.
When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
Do not be afraid of sudden terror,
Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;
For the Lord will be your confidence,
And will keep your foot from being caught” (Prov. 3: 21-26 NLT).
It is very clear from this text that if we seek and keep wisdom and follow after discretion then we will know grace and favour, safety, no fear, peace, confidence and sure-footedness.
It is also very clear that we can expect trouble: “Do not be afraid of sudden terror, Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes”. We wrote yesterday that we live in a fallen world and, therefore, all of us are going to be affected by evil and wickedness from time to time.
The 2 aren’t mutually exclusive. Wisdom makes it possible for us to not be worried and fearful when bad events beset us. NO matter what happens, wisdom gives us the freedom to ask ourselves, “Even if the very thing that I fear most happens to me, will I be able to trust God?”
In other words, when we have trust in God, we can take captive the fear of bad things happening to us and live in peace. We will be so assured when we trust in God that any fearful event that does confront us will be under the protection of God’s grace. “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love” (I John 4:18).
Yes, bad things will happen but you don’t have to let bad things own you because when you belong to God, you are His and He will never let you go. “For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways” (Psa. 91:11).
*quotes from NKJV
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