Don’t Be Afraid

Don’t Be Afraid

Bible: Isaiah 51:12-16

I, even I, am he who comforts you (V.12).

Are you a worrier? I am. I struggle with stress almost daily. I worry about big things. I worry about small things. Sometimes it seems like I worry about everything. Once as a teenager, I called the police when my parents were four hours late getting home!

The Bible repeatedly tells us not to be afraid. Because of God’s goodness and power, and because He sent Jesus to die for us and His Holy Spirit to guide us, our worries don’t have to rule our lives. We may well face hard things, but God has promised to be with us through it all.

One part of the Bible that’s helped me lots when I’ve felt worried is Isaiah 51:12–16. Here, God reminded His people (who’d gone through terrible pains and losses) that He was still with them. He wanted them to know His comfort, no matter how bad things may have seemed. “I, even I, am he who comforts you,” He told them (V.12).

I love that promise. Those eight words have made me feel calm many times. I’ve clung to them when I’ve felt in over my head or when I’ve faced my own “constant terror” (V.13). Through these words, I’m reminded to lift my eyes from my worry and—in trust—to look to the God who “stretches out the heavens” (V.13) and who promises to comfort us.

GOD’S COMFORT IS MORE POWERFUL THAN OUR FEARS.

Youth Edition – Our Daily Bread Ministries