Fear of the Unknown.

Sometimes our fears overwhelm us. We start to think about our lives, our hopes, our disappointments and our first inclination is to turn away. It's scary to hope again when you've been so let down. It's scary to believe something good may happen after so much pain. Its easier to not hope, to not think, to not believe, to be complacent. We don't trust God to be good to us. We want to, but we are afraid.

God knows how frightened we are, he knows how ashamed we are. He understands us better then we understand ourselves. But if do not admit that we are afraid and give that fear to Him, we cannot recover.

God knows you, He knows what's next, He knows how to help you, how to love you, how to heal you. We can see God's character in Isaiah 30:18-22,

"And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you.

For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!

O people who dwell in Zion at Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will answer you.

And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide Himself any more, but your eyes will constantly behold your Teacher.

And your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way; walk in it, when you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left..."

God is waiting to be gracious to you today! He longs to show you loving-kindness and give you favor, love, peace, joy and matchless, unbroken connection!! He wants to teach you. He will tell you which way to go, you can hear His voice and you can cast away your fear. God wants you to declare "Be gone!" to all those things that stand in between you and Him and the life you desire.

But in order to do that, God says we must "constantly behold your Teacher". That means we are to focus intensely on who He is in order to take hold of what he has for us. Even though we do not know what lies ahead, we can come to trust the character of God through meditating on His love for us and as we do this, our fear of the unknown will begin to melt away and peace will fill our hearts.