God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.[c]
Psalm 46:1-3
One thing that really stood out for me this time was the beginning of verse 2: "Therefore we will not fear..." It doesn't say "Therefore we will not be afraid." Fear here is a verb, and the declaration "we will not" indicates a choice to act. It is not a decision not to feel a certain way, but a decision not to give weight to anyone other than God, even though chaos is whirling.
As a (recovering) perfectionist, I struggle a lot with the fear of failure. When I fear failure, it drives drives me. It defines what is important and reorders my life so that I will do everything I can do avoid disappointing people or to make sure an event turns out just right. It drives me to lecture myself when things go wrong ("I can't believe you just did that. You should've _____________"), it gives freedom to the tape in my head to run amok, and it pushes me into shame.
But I have a choice. I can choose not to allow failure to take control of my thoughts, my words, and my actions - because it does not deserve that kind of weight, and because God is my fortress.
