“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’” Psalm 91:1-2 (NIV)

My eyes popped open and my heart raced when my phone buzzed at 1 a.m. Good news isn’t usually delivered at that hour.

I hopped out of bed and grabbed my phone to read a text: “Mom, police have my dorm on lockdown and are running up and down the hall shouting. I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m scared.”

It was Ashley, my daughter who was a college freshman at the time, more than seven hours away from me.

I tried calling her, but the reception was so bad neither of us could make out what the other was saying. Texting was my only option, so I asked a series of questions trying to get a better handle on what was happening.

My hands were shaking. My heart was racing. And I felt intensely helpless.

When she was a little girl and cried out in the middle of the night, all I had to do was run upstairs. I could sit on the edge of her bed and rub her back. I could let her see me. Calm her with my touch. Be there to whisper reassurances.

But that little girl had grown into a college girl living very far away from me.

I couldn’t sit on her bed, and she couldn’t see me. I couldn’t calm her with my touch. I couldn’t whisper those reassurances with my voice.

All I could do was text her.

And that felt completely inadequate in light of the situation.

Scary images assaulted my mind with all the possible scenarios a completely shaken mama conjures up in moments of frightening uncertainty. I sank down to my knees and begged God to clear my head and give me the words to text that would help.

This was one of those times I wished God would appear in a way my eyes could see and give me clear, step-by-step instructions saying exactly what to do.

But I couldn’t see Him. And no Spirit Finger wrote instructions on my wall. Instead, I felt this gentle nudge to pay attention to what He’d already given me that week: A set of verses a friend texted me and that I’d passed along to another friend, which includes our key verses today.

Psalm 91:1-2, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.'”

I love that these verses give us a script to say out loud, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Quickly, I texted Ashley these verses and instructed her to say this out loud over and over until she felt some relief from her fear. And you better believe I was saying it out loud over and over as well.

Isn’t it interesting the two words God is called here are refuge and fortress?

A refuge is a quick place you duck into to find shelter. A fortress is a place built intentionally for the purposes of exceptional security. The Hebrew word for fortress is metsudah, with one of its definitions being an “inaccessible place.”

God is not just a quick refuge from the storm, but He’s also the place where fear no longer has access to me.

Fear can’t catch what it can no longer reach.

It’s not that bad things won’t happen to my kids or me. We live in a broken world where broken things happen every day. But as a child of God, I don’t have to live with fear taunting and terrorizing me.

We still don’t know all the reasons why my daughter’s dorm was on lockdown. Thankfully, she and her friends were safe and we all eventually got some sleep that night. I understand that other middle-of-the-night calls don’t turn out so well. I’ve sadly lived through those times too.

But I’m determined to make some imperfect progress when I’m processing fear.

I now know I can feel afraid, but I don’t have to live afraid.

I can say out loud, “Dear God, You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” And then close my eyes and picture Him lifting me to a place where fear can’t hold me.

Dear Lord, I’m declaring today that I will not live in a state of fear. I place all of my fears into Your hands and commit to trust Your plan. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:

Psalm 32:7, “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” (NIV)

RELATED RESOURCES:

Jesus tells us in Scripture that He is the Light of the world — bringing hope and clarity to the situations that leave us anxious and confused. If you want to experience the Light of the world in a fresh way, you’ll enjoy Lysa TerKeurst’s Bible study, focusing on the seven “I Am” statements of Jesus. Finding I AM will help you stop living like a slave to your circumstances by training your heart to embrace the life-giving freedom God wants for you. Order your copy here today.

CONNECT:

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REFLECT AND RESPOND:

What fear are you living with? The next time you feel that fear sneaking in, declare the Scripture and prayer Lysa shared. Remember: You can feel afraid, but you don’t have to live afraid!

© 2017 by Lysa TerKeurst. All rights reserved.