Fear Not
Has fear ever gripped you and robbed you of opportunities? Countless times in God’s word He tells His children, “fear not.” David understood this well when he penned:
“The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life-of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1)
Horrific memories still seize a young woman I met in a hotel lobby. This woman was serving me coffee when she described how she escaped from a refugee camp in Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge was a communist force that took over Cambodia in the mid to late-70′s. Through starvation, disease and even murder, this regime killed between one and three million Cambodians-about one-eighth of the total population. Few Cambodians during that time were able to escape. This young woman was one of those few.
She recounted how her brother was killed during the escape attempt and her mother was simply incapable of continuing in their journey for freedom. A guide who assisted this young woman held on to her and would not let go. He made her swim across a river to Thailand. As Cambodian soldiers were shooting on one side of the river, the woman just kept swimming and listening to the chants of the Thailand soldiers who were encouraging these brave people in their quest for freedom on the other side of the river.
As I sat in the lobby of the hotel in California listening to this woman’s amazing story, I asked her if she was ever frightened by those memories. She replied, “Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and I am so afraid and then I remember, it’s okay, I’m in America.”
Today as you sit in the comfort of your home or as you safely travel to work think about the freedom and security we experience here in America and thank God for allowing you to live in such a great nation.
