Psalm 19:7-9, The Message
The revelation of God is whole and pulls our lives together.
The signposts of God are clear and point out the right road.
The life-maps of God are right, showing the way to joy.
The directions of God are plain and easy on the eyes.
God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold, with a lifetime guarantee.
The decisions of God are accurate down to the nth degree.
A friend named Charla spent a lot of time making fun of some friends who were stronger Christians than she was. Often when she strayed and got in trouble, she would seek out one of the “girls” and cry on her shoulder. But most of the time she just laughed whenever anyone tried to tell her what she was doing was wrong.
She constantly mocked her friends, telling them they sounded like old women. Still they loved Charla, but had difficulty understanding the choices she made.
Early one morning Gwen was surprised to see Charla standing at her door in tears. She had begun to wake up to the fact that she really was living a wrong life-style. The more she thought about it, the worse she felt.
As she humbled herself, she chose to go to Gwen for help. Gwen invited her in and told her she had come to the right person, one who had been praying for her. She shared Jesus answer for fear. “Perfect love destroys fear.”
The first step toward God is to believe and receive the Gift of Love that Jesus offers in a personal relationship with love and care. Realizing what one does wrong is the second step. Releasing fear of what might happen if you do wrong is the next step.
Fear can be healthy when it forces us to face the reality of carnal living. God’s plan is to cast out fear and provide blessings as we daily pick up our cross and follow Jesus. Strength for doing that is only found at Mount Calvary as we pick up the cross of life and not death… and follow Jesus. He will always lead us to travel the High Road of Love if we follow him. As we continue to do that, fear is left behind and joy travels with us.
The promise is: Nothing can harm us once we are in the Lord’s right of way. God’s judgments are righteous and true, and He will always help us make the changes that allow us to clean up our lives, if we will only ask Him.