Anxious for Nothing

God told us “do not fear” or “fear not” 365 times in the Bible.

Do you think He knows us? Our bent towards harboring fear that settles in and paralyzes us from enjoying the abundant life He intends for us to live?

There is an old towering tree in a clearing where I walk. To get to the tree I can take a few different paths. Tonight I took the longer trail. Passed sheltering trees with glints of evening sun in the branches. Silence.

Picked up a stick that fell in last night’s storm. Tossed a rock pushed up from the ground. Stopped to catch my breath at the top of the long hill. Listened for signs of life. Watched a doe disappear into the woods to my right. Saw a feather left by the hawk screeching high overhead. Kept walking. Grateful for a body that works.

I’ve been watching for the wild grapes entwined in the branches of that old tree. High grass surrounds the base of the pine. Deer have been resting there. Tonight, finally, the grapes are ripening and plump. A simple feast waiting in the middle of a forest clearing. Abundant life draped over old branches securely in the middle of nowhere.

Why, my soul, are you downcast?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise him,

my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42:11

God provides. Even in our fear and anxieties; in the silence of our walk; clutching burdens we struggle to know how to drop at His feet; imperfect vision contemplating the beauty wrapped around us in this fallen, breathtaking, decaying world.

God is so good to us.

Quiet forest walk? Unexpected feast or provision? How has God encouraged you today?