THE STEADFAST HEART (3)

“He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his HEART is STEADFAST, trusting in the Lord” – Psalm 112:7

There is no room for tormenting Fear in the STEADFAST HEART: “He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his HEART is STEADFAST, trusting in the Lord. His HEART is ESTABLISHED; He will not be afraid, until he sees his desire upon his enemies” (Psa.112:7-8). God would have this scripture touch a tender place in us and fill us with unwavering faith. The Steadfast heart is a fearless and established heart! The established, fixed, and steadfast heart is “trusting in the LORD” and therefore triumphant over fear. The only fear that’s commanded and permitted for the Believer is the Fear of God: “Blessed is the man who fears the LORD…” (v.1).

The verses following highlight the qualities of this blessed, steadfast-hearted person: generationally blessed (v.2); rich and righteous (vv.3,9b); enlightened and compassionate (v.4); gracious and generous with discretion (vv.5,9); fearless and unshakeable (vv.6-8); and dignified and reputable – “His horn will be exalted with honor” (v.9c). His or her godly reputation grieves the wicked (v.10).

So, how steadfast are our hearts? When things are going well and life seems calm, we sometimes find ourselves entertaining negative thoughts and worrying that bad news may just be around the corner! Rather than relax in God, we get stuck in anxiety, and allow stress to cast shadows over our present blessings. This may be due to past seasons of difficulty or recent knocks of life that lead us to be wary, keeping us from experiencing fullness of joy. Yes, it’s easy to grow weary and start doubting God’s faithfulness, but we must never forget that our survival and success are not entirely dependent on us. God works on our behalf to bring His purposes to pass and His blessings to fulfilment. The Lord wants us to be free from imaginary and unnecessary fears and worries.

The disciples were terrified when Jesus came towards them walking on water. They thought it was a ghost and were in great fear, but it was a totally pointless fear. Jesus assured them: “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid” (Mt.14:17). FEAR has been described as False Expectations Appearing Real! Many times we wallow in baseless and unwarranted fear when we fail to recognise the hand of God in our lives. The devil often makes mountains out of molehills; simple problems to appear like insurmountable mountains. Rather than live in needless fear, God wants our hearts to trust in Him and our minds to be stayed on Him: “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are STEADFAST, because they trust in you” (Isa.26:3, NIV).

The devil attacks believers with flaming arrows of bad news to shake our faith and torment us with fear. But we need not be afraid or overwhelmed by any negative thoughts he tries to inject into our hearts. When we calm down and zoom out to the big picture, we can clearly see God’s constant and steadfast presence in every detail. Circumstances are ever changing, but God remains faithful, strong and steady. His Mercy and Love endure forever. God has already planned ahead for our needs. So let’s choose to rejoice and be glad in the day the Lord has made. Let’s appreciate what He has done and is doing for us, in any circumstance, good or bad.

The Lord commands that we “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phi.4:6-7). We must not allow our feelings to dictate our faith? We overcome anxiety, not through self-effort or a strong will and determination, but by the help of the Holy Spirit. God is always ready to provide for our every need and hold us steady. The Holy Spirit, our Helper, is reliable, dependable, and not subject to emotional instability. Let’s trust in Him and have no fear. He’ll make our hearts more like Jesus’ – steadfast, secure, and unshakeable. Beloved, declare with me: “My heart is steadfast”!