Fear not, He will protect
Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.” ~ Genesis 15:1
Have you ever worked so hard for the Lord and yet didn’t feel like there were any lasting results from all the effort you had put in? There was a time in my life when I felt like I had given so much, worked hard in obedience to what I believed God was calling me to, and yet there wasn’t much to show for it. I wasn’t seeing the fruit produced from the hard work that I had prayed over and committed to God. In all honesty, I felt disappointed. I questioned whether I had misunderstood God’s direction. I was weary and wondering if anything I had done really mattered in the big picture. Then one morning, while reading my Bible, I came across this passage in Genesis 15. It felt like God whispered directly to my heart: “I am your shield. I am your reward.” In that moment, I realized I had been looking for the outcome to be my reward, but God was reminding me that He is the ultimate reward. His presence, His protection, and His promises. How blessed I am!
Genesis 15 opens with Abram in a very similar place. He had just experienced a great victory in battle, but deep down, he was still troubled. He had no heir, and the promises of God seemed unfulfilled and far away. In his moment of vulnerability, God spoke to Abram, reassuring him not to be afraid and affirming that He was both Abram’s shield and reward. God didn’t rebuke Abram for his questions. Instead, He drew near, made a covenant with him, and reminded him of the greatness of what was to come.
Maybe you’re in a place right now where you’re waiting on God to come through. You’ve obeyed, trusted and held on, but you’re still not seeing the fruit of your faith. Maybe fear has crept in, or you’re starting to feel like the promise might have passed you by. God is speaking the same words to you today: “Do not be afraid. I am your shield. I am your reward.”
Here are some steps to take when you feel fearful:
- Be honest in prayer. Like Abram, it’s okay to bring your questions to God. Pour out your heart to Him and listen for His response.
- Remember His promises. Go back and read the scriptures God has spoken to you. Write them down. Post them where you’ll see them daily.
- Worship while you wait. Even when answers haven’t come yet, lift your eyes and worship God for who He is.
- Surround yourself with people of faith. Talk with someone who will speak life and truth into your situation.
- Take the next step. Even if you don’t see the whole path, take the step that’s in front of you and trust that God is leading.
Today I want to encourage you to hold tightly to the God who is your shield and your reward. Don’t let discouragement steal your hope. God’s covenant with Abram reminds us that He is faithful to His promises, even when seeing the answer takes time. Your questions do not disqualify you from His blessings. Instead, they create space for deeper intimacy and trust. He sees you. He knows the desires of your heart. Fear not, He is not finished with your story.
Today’s scripture reading: Genesis 15
1 Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.”
2 But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son? Since you’ve given me no children, Eliezer of Damascus, a servant in my household, will inherit all my wealth.
3 You have given me no descendants of my own, so one of my servants will be my heir.”
4 Then the Lord said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.”
5 Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”
6 And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.
7 Then the Lord told him, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession.”
8 But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, how can I be sure that I will actually possess it?”
9 The Lord told him, “Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 So Abram presented all these to him and killed them. Then he cut each animal down the middle and laid the halves side by side; he did not, however, cut the birds in half.
11 Some vultures swooped down to eat the carcasses, but Abram chased them away.
12 As the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a terrifying darkness came down over him.
13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years.
14 But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth.
15 (As for you, you will die in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.)
16 After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction.”
17 After the sun went down and darkness fell, Abram saw a smoking firepot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses.
18 So the Lord made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River—
19 the land now occupied by the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites,
20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,
21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.”
Journal:
- What promise from God are you still waiting to see fulfilled?
- How has God protected or shown Himself faithful to you in the past?
- Write a prayer today asking God to be your shield and reward as you wait for what’s next.
The Daily Dose 