Do Not Fear

(Our Theme for June)

Mark 13:11

“Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand what to say.  Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.”

Thankfully, most of us have never been arrested and brought to trial, where we have to worry about what to say.  But, we need to understand how these words of Jesus relate to us in the Court of Public Opinion every single day!

Just prior to saying these words to his disciples, Jesus was telling them that a time was surely coming, when the temple in Jerusalem would be flattened, leaving not one stone on another.  He told them of wars and rumors of wars, of many claiming to be “him”, deceiving them.  He said ,“Nation will rise against nation, earthquakes and famine will happen in various places.”  He told them that these would be the beginning of birth pains!

I can’t help but see a correlation to these words in the news each day in 2024.  Just as Jesus warned, we do hear of wars and rumors of wars, of nations rising against nations, of earthquakes, famine, fires, bombs, and many abominations!

What are we to do? What are we to say–in the court of public opinion–on social media, in conversations with our families and friends? 

Jesus clearly says that we shouldn’t worry beforehand what we are to say.  He assures us that if we are quiet and listen for the Holy Spirit, we will hear Him speaking through us!

It will take a lot of prayer and quiet time for me to hold my tongue and to let the Holy Spirit take over.  I have plenty of opinions about everything!  But the news wars, the political wars, and the bitter fights with angry hate-filled words, will help no one, and certainly will not be following this advice Jesus gave us – his disciples.

So, my friends, let’s pray together now and let’s pray mighty prayers each day – asking for Jesus to help us to hold peace in our hearts and to let the Holy Spirit of LOVE, speak for us as we face this Court of Public Opinion every single day.

Dear God, please guide my heart.  Help me to allow Your Loving Holy Spirit to speak LOVE, instead of me blurting out my own fearful, angry words.  Help me, Lord, to be diligent in my efforts to draw closer to you and to allow you to take over ALL my conversations.  I ask all of this in Jesus’ name.  Amen!

Today’s devotional was written and read by Bernice Howard.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.