Red Rocks Worship – “Not Afraid” Day One (Devotional)

Day One (Psalm 103:1-18)

ΓÇ£I have this confidence because IΓÇÖve seen the faithfulness of God.ΓÇ¥

You guys, I love this song. IΓÇÖve always attached myself to songs that have declarative faith-filled words, words that have the power to change our perspective and redirect any lack of belief. This song just takes me there and it does 2 things for me: itΓÇÖs a reminder of who God is and what He has done, and it advances my faith.

We need to focus on Him, and remind ourselves of what He has done.

HereΓÇÖs the deal. Humans are me-centered creatures that have a tendency to zoom in on our current circumstance and allow that to consume us. We allow the smallest, most petty things to distract us from the glory of God, and because of this we can find ourselves missing out on a great faith. Instead, we need to focus on Him, and remind ourselves of what He has done. God himself knew that we would struggle with remembering.  

In Exodus 17, Moses was worn out from a long-winded battle, so much so that he literally had some dudes physically holding him up until the Israelite’s had defeated the Amalekite army. After this, ΓÇ£the Lord said to Moses, ΓÇÿWrite this on a scroll as something to be rememberedΓÇÖ…ΓÇ¥

If I take a moment to step back, breath for a minute, and recount the things He has done for me, IΓÇÖm a little lighter on my feet and my mind is cleared from clutter of life.

One of the prayers I often pray with my worship team goes something like this: ΓÇ£Lord, I thank you for today. We take account of all the blessings in our lives, the big ones, the small ones, and even the ones that we have yet to realize.ΓÇ¥ I find this practice to be so important in my walk. If I take a moment to step back, breath for a minute, and recount the things He has done for me, IΓÇÖm a little lighter on my feet and my mind is cleared from clutter of life. ItΓÇÖs kinda like when you clean up all the junk on your computer desktop, drag it to the trash bin, and then rejoice over the crunching sound it makes when you hit ΓÇ£empty.ΓÇ¥  SO satisfying. 

Now maybe you find yourself in a completely different boat. The things that are consuming you arenΓÇÖt small and petty. Maybe youΓÇÖre walking through hell right now, and you feel like The Lord has been absent, the lines of communication have been closed, and maybe even feeling like God has completely abandoned you. Let me first say that IΓÇÖm so sorry youΓÇÖre going through this right now, God loves you and has NOT abandoned you, and I pray that He would reveal himself to you. 

Secondly, I would say this. ItΓÇÖs in this desert where our faith is tested. ItΓÇÖs my hope and prayer that we would cling to the truth of GodΓÇÖs word and come out of it like an Old Testament hero. 

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing

(James 1:2-4). 

If I can speak plainly, what Jesus did on the cross should be enough to carry our faith through any trial. Thank you Jesus for the cross! But the great thing about our God is He is alive and active, and is continually proving Himself over and over. He is bringing us from faith to faith, (Romans 1:17) from glory to glory, and from strength to strength (Psalm 84:7).

Today, take a moment to step back and breath. Thank God for all His blessings. Recount all of the ways He has been faithful to you, and walk confidently knowing that He is there to see us through to the end. This produces great faith. 

ΓÇ£O my soul, Bless God. From head to toe, IΓÇÖll bless his holy name!

O my soul, bless God, DonΓÇÖt forget a single blessing!

He forgives your sinsΓÇöevery one.

He heals your diseasesΓÇöevery one.

He redeems you from hellΓÇösaves your life!

He crowns you with love and mercyΓÇöa paradise crown. 

He wraps you in goodnessΓÇöbeauty eternal. 

He renews your youthΓÇöyouΓÇÖre always young in His presence. 

God makes everything come out right.ΓÇ¥

(Psalm 103:1-18 MSG)