Rest in Him (from the devo)
“I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
Psalms 4:8 NKJV
“God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, Even though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea…”
Psalms 46:1-2 NKJV
“Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life, then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding, will guard your heart and mind through Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 4:6-7 TPT
Regardless of how you frame it, or how you see the world, there is always a reason to be fearful.
There are truly scary events going on in the world right now as we speak. Wars that are already taking innocent lives as well as the threat and rumor of even more wars. Shootings, stabbings, and petty crime. Very touchy political issues, such as the immigration wars and battles with police. You can be going about your daily life, just getting through another day, and BAM, there goes another terrible statistic on your phone while you scroll. Or you’ll be trying to watch a YouTube video (to escape from it all for at least a moment) and BAM, an ad about suffering children, whether in your own country or on the other side of the globe.
There is plenty of suffering in the world today.
All of this exists as the backdrop to your own personal life. You may be experiencing difficulties with your career in medicine. (Honestly, you probably ARE experiencing difficulties in your career in medicine.) Maybe a loved one is sick, or you’re working through a difficult relationship. Or you may be doing fine, and out of nowhere, the most devastating news comes to rock your world.
All of this can make it very hard to stay positive. You may even run into people who look at you as facetious for even trying to be happy. With all of the trouble going on in the world, how can we not spend every minute being fearful, apprehensive and depressed?
Turns out, God has a lot to say about fear. 365 times in the Bible, once for every day of the year, the phrase is repeated again and again, “Do not fear.”
You have the command and the power not to live in fear, not because fearful circumstances don’t happen, but because God is with you to protect you and pull you through.
Forty-two times in the Psalms, and even more times outside of them, God is mentioned as a refuge for his people. A refuge is a safe place, a place where you can be safe from the enemy’s attacks and live in peace. Several verses in the Psalms also mention God as a warrior who fights for His people, and the one who sees everyone and everything.
This doesn’t mean that we pretend that trouble isn’t there, or that we don’t work for justice — far from it. But it does mean that we don’t have to live in fear, or anxiety, or depression because of the trouble all around if we know that God is with us. As medical providers, we don’t have to look far to find out about the catastrophic effects of uncontrolled anxiety on our bodies and minds. We weren’t meant to carry that kind of stress day in and day out. Instead, we are allowed to give our worries to God.
I like the Passion Translation of Philippians 4:6-7 because it says to not only give God your worries but to be saturated in prayer throughout each day. That may sound super holy to you, but in reality, it very often consists of praying one word — “help!!!” — whenever you’re getting anxious; getting calm for 2 seconds; getting anxious again; and then calling for help again…and again…and again, until you find lasting relief. It’s not a one-time process; God allows us to give our worries to Him continually, even several times a day if needed! He knows our every thought before we even think it, so why not bring your worries to Him if he already knows?
When we truly depend on God as our refuge, and when we continually bring our worries and concerns to Him in prayer, then we will develop a strong relationship with God. It is out of that relationship that the so-called peace of God from Philippians 4:7 will flow. This peace is not dependent on circumstances and very often won’t even make sense to describe, but it will sustain you. And even in a world as dangerous as this one, that peace of God will allow you to both lay down and sleep in peace.
This is an excerpt from The Resident Physician’s Devotional, a 21-day devotional of encouragement specifically for resident doctors. To get the link to the full book for free, check out the “Resources” section of this website!