Matthew 10:26-33

Matthew 10:26-33 
English Standard Version

   Fear is paralyzing.   When I was a kid, I used to be afraid of the dark corners of my bedroom, and I'd lay in bed afraid until I eventually fell asleep, exhausted.  Now that I'm an adult, I know there isn't anything lurking in the corners of my bedroom -- I spend my energy on much less concrete worries, fears that can't be dispelled by turning on the light.  And still, I lie in bed until I eventually fall asleep, exhausted. 
  Fear is exhausting and paralyzing, and it occupies our minds to the point that we can't think about anything else.  We're trapped by it - in a prison of our own making.
  Jesus comes to liberate us from this fear.  He has come to set us free by reminding us that God is bigger and stronger than anything we might fear, and God is for us!  God chooses to be on our side, defeating our biggest enemies, and promising us that we are safe in his righteous and victorious hands.  With God, we can rest, like a baby asleep on its mother's lap. 
  It's a lifetime of effort to learn how to trust God, but in God, we find our true rest.