April 2, 2021

Calm in the Crisis

By Skip Heitzig

It's normal to feel fearful during a crisis. Whenever life is turned on its head, it's easy to be stressed and anxious about whatever new reality you find yourself living in. It's natural, in fact. But here's the deal: we're not called to natural living. We are called to exist on the higher plane of supernatural living.

To do that successfully, we need to take our cues from Scripture. In Psalm 27, David was going through not just a personal crisis but a national one as well. From this psalm, let's look at five things that should mark the believer's life in a time of crisis:

1. Vigilance. "The wicked came against me…. An army may encamp against me…[and] war may rise against me" (vv. 2-3). David was aware of the threats around him; he knew that he lived in a dangerous world. In the same way, we need to be alert and aware of the potential danger around us. But we certainly can't stop there.

2. Confidence. "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?... Though war may rise against me, in this I will be confident" (vv. 1, 3). David here was being theologically logical. He was saying, "Because the sovereign, all-powerful God is my light and my salvation, I'm not going to fear." The Bible says that "we walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). We can walk confidently in the dark because God is light.

3. Reverence. "One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple" (v. 4). Take the time to behold the Lord, both through His Word and through His beauty in creation. Let whatever trial you're going through move you to fill your daily life with worship and prayer. And when trouble threatens to overwhelm you, let God overwhelm your trouble.

4. Obedience. "When You said, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD, I will seek'" (v. 8). God might have audibly spoken to David here, but I think He was probably nudging him through the present distress he was experiencing, as if the crisis amplified God's voice better than ever before. Could it be God is speaking to you through the trial you're facing? How are you going to demonstrate your trust in and obedience to Him during this time?

5. Expectance. "I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living" (v. 13). Do you expect to see God's goodness displayed in the midst of chaos? Have you entrusted to Him whatever season you're in? Remember that perseverance and prayer are better than panic.

God doesn't always keep us from tragedy or heal us miraculously. Yes, He can calm storms, but He more often calms us in the midst of the storm. That's what I'm praying He would do for you. I pray that He would strengthen your faith and that you would choose to live on that higher plane of supernatural living.

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For more from Skip Heitzig, visit ConnectwithSkip.com, and listen to today's broadcast of Connect with Skip Heitzig at OnePlace.com.