Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5 ESV)
Fear Not… Then Lean
I have a fancy, location-decorated walking stick. I do not do enough hiking to make this stick a necessary part of my life, but when I HAVE needed it, I have been glad to have it. I was mildly stranded, for instance, in the woods behind Mt. Rushmore a few years ago. The weather turned nasty, I got turned around, and my three-mile hike was vastly extended.
I needed my stick on THAT day.
My own rubbery legs and sore back were not strong enough. But I leaned on my stick!
Our understanding of events sometimes is like my rubbery legs. We need something else to lean on.
And that something else is the Lord, according to this verse.
In fact, I probably need that stick in my life more often than I admit it.
I tend to lean on my own understanding regarding my financial decisions. I tend to lean on my own understanding when it comes to winning arguments. I tend to lean on my own understanding when it comes to daily health concerns. I tend to lean on my own understanding when it comes to dealing with my fears.
But instead, I could lean on the stick God gives me. His word, His Spirit, His Son, His love, His power, His providence.
Fear Not… then lean.