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About this post: We want to stay connected! This blog post is part of a series of daily devotionals for this season. Read them, share them, and pray that they bring God's peace and love to our communities. To sign up to receive text notification of these posts, text zpc to 39970. We welcome your comments and questions each day.

About the author:  Jane Burgess and her husband Claude has been members at ZPC since 2003. They have 2 grown children, Kristin and Thomas. Jane recently led the Girls Awakening #45, and she and Claude are leading the All-Church Retreat in August 2020. She loves being a part of her Home Girls Group and Soul Sisters.

Today’s scripture:  Psalm 33:18-22

Almost a year ago Claude and I, along with a group of mostly ZPCers, began a biblical journey of a lifetime in Israel. At the end of the two-week trip, we reflected on what we had experienced and how we were impacted. I comment on that because of my fear of traveling to the Middle East, I had almost said no to this opportunity. Looking back, I am so thankful that I did not let fear keep me from going to Israel. It was truly one of the most life changing experiences I have ever had. What we saw and did made the Bible come alive in way that I could never have imagined. 

One very memorable experience was crossing the Sea of Galilee by boat where Jesus had walked on water and invited Peter to come walk on the water with Him (Matthew 14:22-33). Peter started walking on the water in complete faith but then fear of the wind and waves caused his faith to falter and he began to sink. How many times in our lives do we let fear cause our faith to falter and cause us to sink into worry? 

In the Bible.org it says, “Lots of situations are too big or too scary for you to handle, but nothing is too big for Jesus! Don’t focus on the situation you are in. Focus on the One who has power over every situation!"

Psalm 33 so perfectly assures to us that we can have a hope, a peace, a joy in the midst of so many changes to life as we knew it. How easily fear can creep into our minds due to COVID-19, loss of income/savings, 24-7 news feed about the pandemic… but, God is our help and our shield, our soul waits for the Lord, we trust in his holy name, our heart rejoices in him. 

Even though these are very uncertain times, the Psalms remind we can rest assured that we can turn our fears over to God and trust that he is in control even when things are spinning out of control around us. It is important for us to find joy, be thankful for God’s promises, and walk in complete faith even in the midst of the waves of pandemic news.  

Father God,
Thank you for the blessings of this day and the calm assurance that you are in control. Please take away any fears that we might have. Help us to always remember to put my trust in you even in these very difficult and uncertain times.  Allow us to reflect the joy that you provide and rejoice that you are with us always. 
Amen

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