In Deuteronomy 31:8 I read, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you." (NLT)
Setting a big goal can be exciting at first—and overwhelming. In fact, looking at the big goal in front of me can scare me. So, how can I respond in faith instead of fear? Here are four ways.
Acknowledge God’s presence.
I can be confident that God is with me and that he is working through every circumstance and situation in my life, including my big goals. Today’s verse reminds me, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you” (Deuteronomy 31:8 NLT).
Watch for signs of God’s work in my life.
The bigger the dream, the longer it may take for me to accomplish it. I may not see the fruit of my labor at first, but look for the little shoots sticking up out of the ground. God is working, even when it’s not obvious. Trusting that God is working will help keep me from fear and discouragement. Keep working toward my godly goal, and in time, I will see God’s blessing.
Stand on God’s promises in the Bible.
When I set a goal, don’t focus on the problems; instead, focus on the promises. Find a promise in God’s Word that will take me to my goal.
Genesis tells the story of Abraham giving his chief servant a big goal: to travel to a faraway land to find a wife for Abraham’s son. When the servant begins to wonder if he can accomplish it. But Abraham reassures his servant by telling him about a promise Abraham received from God: “The Lord will send his angel before you to help you get a wife for my son there” (Genesis 24:7 NCV).
When I have a God-given goal that’s tied to a promise in the Bible, I can wait with faith, not fear, trusting that God will honor his promises.
Believe in the goodness of God’s plans.
How do I know that God’s plans for me are good? The Bible includes more than 7,000 promises of God’s goodness towards me, because he wants me to learn to trust him, to have faith instead of fear.
God may not send an angel to go before me as I work toward my goal, but that’s okay—I don’t need an angel! Dozens of times in Scripture God has said, “I’ll be with you, no matter where you go.”
Whatever big goal God has put in front of me today, choose to respond with faith instead of fear as I watch for signs of his work in my life and believe in his goodness to me.
In summary, setting a big goal can be exciting and overwhelming. It can even scare me. How can I respond in faith instead of fear? First, Acknowledge God’s presence. Be confident that God is with me and that he is working through every circumstance and situation in my life. Today’s verse reminds me, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of me. He will be with me; he will neither fail nor abandon me”. Second, watch for signs of God’s work in my life. The bigger the dream, the longer it may take for me to accomplish it. I may not see fruit at first, but look for the little shoots sticking up. God is working, even when it’s not obvious. Trusting that God is working will help keep me from fear and discouragement. Keep working toward my goal, in time, I will see God’s blessing. Thirdly, stand on God’s promises in the Bible. Don’t focus on the problems; instead, focus on the promises. Find a promise in God’s Word that will take me to my goal. When I have a God-given goal that’s tied to a promise in the Bible, I can wait with faith, not fear, trusting that God will honor his promises. Lastly, believe in the goodness of God’s plans. He wants me to learn to trust him, to have faith instead of fear. God may not send an angel to go before me as I work, but I don’t need one! Dozens of times in Scripture God has said, “I’ll be with you, no matter where you go.” With the big goal God has put in front of me, I need to choose to respond with faith instead of fear as I watch for signs of his work in my life and believe in his goodness to me.
I am to be strong and courageous. God is right here with me. He won’t let me down; he won’t leave me. So don’t be intimidated and don’t worry.
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