It’s Important to Remember – Hope is the Antidote to Fear
How much hope do you have?
Let me ask it another way…
How often does fear overwhelm you?
Believe me, I understand your struggle because I spent years living with oppressive fear and anxiety. All it took was a “what if” whisper for me to spend hours trapped in a circle of fretful thoughts.
But we’re talking about hope today; so, why am I asking about your struggle with fear?
Because hope is the antidote to fear.
It is believed that Psalm 11 was written while David was running from King Saul.
Saul was jealous of David’s growing popularity and he wanted him out of the picture. So David’s advisers urged David, the anointed future king, to run for his life.
But David’s response was to trust in God…
I trust in the Lord for protection.
Psalm 11:1
So why do you say to me,
“Fly like a bird to the mountains for safety!”
I’ve learned that David was absolutely right. When the enemy taunts me with fear and my human weakness tempts me to run and hide, the Lord has shown me that I can trust in Him to watch over me.
A number of years ago, during an overwhelming season of fear, I grabbed my Bible and spent every free moment reading—Genesis through Revelation—I pressed into God’s Word of Truth! And through His Spirit, the Lord showed me that He always has been, is today, and always will be greater than my fear.
The writer of Hebrews penned…
God has said,
Hebrews 13:5b–7
“I will never fail you.
I will never abandon you.”
So we can say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper,
so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?”
Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God.
Think of all the good that has come from their lives,
and follow the example of their faith.
When our situation feels fragile and the enemy fills our thoughts with doubts and fear, we can speak the truth in faith both to the enemy and to our hearts…
“I trust the Lord for protection!”
Faith in the Lord gives us hope. And hope is the antidote to fear.
5 Verses to Help You Remember that
Hope is the Antidote to Fear
Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm,
Hebrews 10:23
for God can be trusted to keep His promise.
Let all that I am wait quietly before God,
Psalm 62:5–6
for my hope is in Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress where I will not be shaken.
I cried out, “I am slipping!”
Psalm 94:18–19
but your unfailing love, O Lord, supported me.
When doubts filled my mind,
your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.
But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper,
Psalm 146:5–6
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
He made heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them.
He keeps every promise forever.
There is one body and one Spirit,
Ephesians 4:4–6
just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.
There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
one God and Father of all,
who is over all, in all, and living through all.
A Prayer to Live with Hope the Antidote to Fear
Lord God, thank you for giving me the gift of faith in Jesus. It is by Your grace alone that I am able to KNOW, TRUST, and LOVE You—my Heavenly Father, my Savior, my Ever-present Helper. Thank you for giving us Your Word to guide us with Your absolute TRUTH. Thank you for Your promises that fill us with hope.
Please forgive me for the times I let the enemy of my soul fill my thoughts with doubt and fear. Forgive me for not taking Your promises to heart and for not using them to fight fear-filled spiritual battles.
Thank you for Jesus’ example that showed us how to use the Sword of the Spirit, Your Word, to fight off the enemy’s temptations and lies.
Please help me. Help me faithfully run to You in prayer. And by the power of Your Spirit, help me hold Your Word in my heart that I might be prepared to fight and reject fearful thoughts the moment they arise. (Ephesians 6:17)
Please increase my faith. “I believe, Lord. Please help me overcome my unbelief.” (Mark 9:24) Please be my source of hope . . . hope that fills me with peace and joy. (Romans 15:13) Please give me an eternal perspective that I might remember that this is just a season to bring me closer to You. (2 Corinthians 4:18)
I love you, Lord. I believe You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life. I trust Your promises. I put my hope in You. Amen.
Are you ready to live without overwhelming fear?
Run to the Lord. Take His Word to heart and turn to Him in prayer. Trust His promises. Ask Him to fill you with hope.
Because hope is the antidote to fear.
And finally, this is my prayer for you today…
Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who loved us and by His grace gave us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope, comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say. 2Thessalonians 2:16–17
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Oh sweet Deb, I too used to suffer with great fear and such anxious thoughts about everything! As I have matured in my faith and with God’s mercy and grace, I am finally able to surrender all to Him and quit “shaking in my boots” shrouded with fear. Of course we all have daily concerns and little worries, but God is there for the tiniest and the greatest of any and all fears!
Psalm 56:3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee. Praise God, we do not have to be prisoners of fear!!
You said it so well, Kathy! I love the words of the father in Scripture that say, “Lord, I believe. Please help me overcome my unbelief.” I think many of us live there when we are faced with life’s concerns and worries. What a blessing to be surrounded by the Father’s grace, mercy, and love. Blessings, my friend!
I need the LORD to truly help my unbelief. My 31 year old son is struggling with addiction and his wife is in the same boat. I have tried over and over to help and recently he told me to leave him alone. I obliged, but am struggling with this. Please dear lord I believe, help my unbelief. Amen
I’m so sorry, Julie! That is such an extremely difficult battle to fight. I’m lifting you up and asking the Lord to hold you close and surround you with His love. I’m also praying for your son and his wife to be delivered from addiction. God be with you and bless you!
Hope is the antidote to fear, Deb, and that’s a fact! May our hope continue to be grounded in God as we trust Him to overcome any obstacle in our path that wants to trigger our human reaction to be fearful.
Blessings, and have a great weekend!
My initial response to difficulties or harassment is to worry about the what’s next and to run. To develop my Trust in Him, God grounded me each time until I could lift my eyes to Him for strength and help. While sometimes my fear still didn’t fully disappeared I gained enough hope and faith to hold on to Jesus by tooth and nail to guide me through. After a while even have been able to be truly thankful for the hatdship as I realized its spiritual benefits.
Yes, it’s not easy to face trials and tribulations with “little faith”, as though I have God’s Sword, be also have quivering knees and arms.
I join you in your prayer for a deeper faith, for an honest commitment to Jesus, and for the Word and God to become a Living Reality in my life.
I love your description of our struggle with fear, Gaby. There is so much honesty in your words and something so many of us can relate to. Thanks as always for visiting and for adding to the conversation. Blessings, my friend.
Amen, dear friend! He is the One best able to help us fight our fear battles. He is the One who gives hope. Thanks for always adding so beautifully to the conversation. Blessings!
I will add these verses to my ‘battle journal’…. as I fight my fears. Heading into yet another cancer treatment soon. We need to head into the big city for over a month this time, and for us country bumpkins that in itself is hard! It all feels surreal. I am not able to do this without God’s grace.
I love that have a “battle journal.” That inspired Rev and me . . . as we are walking the battle of ALS for him. We are praying for you and asking God to shower you with many blessings throughout the month ahead. God be with you!
Your prayers are such an encouragement to me!
Thank you for the effort and love that you put into each “devotional”. Each one encourages me to study more.
I share many of your emails and especially your prayers which are so helpful to pray them personally for different situations that arise in my life, the lives of family members and in the lives of friends.
Thank you so very much for your kind encouragement. I love being able to do this and friends, like you, make it an extra special blessing. May God be with you and bless you! And thank you for sharing these with your family and friends.