King Hezekiah was generally a good King. Things were going along pretty well until the day the king of Assyria showed up, ready to destroy Israel. This Assyrian King had been wiping out everyone in his path when he sent his messengers to the people of Israel, telling them to surrender or die. These threats were real and struck tremendous fear into the hearts of God’s people, as evidenced by King Hezekiah’s response. “As soon as Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth,” Isaiah 37:1.

It seems like Satan always has a plan to disrupt our peace and confidence in God. Life seems to be going along pretty well when all of a sudden something comes into our lives and strikes fear deep into our hearts. All it takes is one text, call, or email. Maybe it’s a national news story, a personal health report, or a situation at work, and suddenly a dark cloud settles in over our lives.

Some days, for me, it’s just the tone and tenor of a meeting at work or something I hear about a family member that darkens my day. I try my best to focus on good things and hope for the future, no matter what life brings me, but being human comes with many occupational hazards. We live in a fallen world and will never fully regain paradise until we leave this world for heaven. What then should we do when these discouraging, fear-causing experiences come our way?

What did King Hezekiah do? First, we read that after freaking out a little, “He tore his clothes,” and went into the house of the Lord. He immediately realized that this situation was bigger than his abilities, so he rushed to get into the presence of the Lord. Time and time again, when something troubles me, I simply take it to the Lord. For me, it often means lying awake at night and praying. I’m not lying awake because I want to, but when I can’t sleep, I take it as a summons from the Lord to pray and think. So many things in my life are beyond my ability to fix. I live with the daily realization that without the Lord’s help and wisdom, I simply can’t make it safely through the trouble life brings. 

I remember once, when I was a pastor, our church was making a huge decision. A handful of people in the church got in the flesh and tried to stop this move of God. I was so tempted to match their fleshly efforts with my own, but the Lord spoke clearly to me and warned me not to fight this battle in the flesh, but rather to use weapons of the Spirit. I listened, and in miraculous ways, God won that battle, and our church exploded in growth. 

It is so easy to get into the flesh when we are under attack. Hezekiah could have tried to fight the king of Assyria with soldiers, but he would have been destroyed. He went straight to the Lord when fear overwhelmed him.

The second thing Hezekiah did was send a message to the prophet Isaiah. He sought the advice of a man whom he knew walked closely with God. One of the wisest things we can ever do when we are facing trouble is to talk to the men and women we know who have an intimate relationship with God and have often displayed understanding and wisdom. For me, it often takes only one conversation with a wise confidant to calm the storm. Satan wants us to live in fear of the worst possible outcome. How many times have we yielded to Satan’s threats and pressure only to realize later that the situation wasn’t near as bad as we thought? Isolation breeds discouragement and irrational fear. Getting into the presence of God and His people often dispels irrational fears and restores hope and promise in our lives. 

Listen to the message Isaiah sent back to King Hezekiah. “Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard…Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.” God wiped out 185,000 Assyrian soldiers and took out their king at the hands of his own sons. 

Today, as you face small or large dark clouds, I encourage you not to allow Satan to overwhelm you with fear. We don’t have the promise that we won’t face difficulty in this life, but we do have the promise that God will be with us and that nothing can stop his ultimate plan for our redemption and good. Look back across your life at your darkest moments and remember how God brought you through. How many times did you fear that everything was going to fall apart? What did God do for you in those times? Often, fear paralyzes us and prevents us from living joyful, grateful lives. Recently, my brother Troy faced the cancer and eventual death of his precious wife, Janel. He likes to say now, “These are the good ole’ days, so let’s enjoy them.” Too often, we act like we can’t enjoy our lives until everything is perfect. I hate to burst your bubble of hope, but life will never be perfect; however, it can be blessed and beautiful in so many ways. 

I have often said, “Where there is overwhelming fear, there is a lack of faith in God, and where there is great faith in God, there will be a lack of overwhelming fear.” I don’t know what you are facing today, but I encourage you to remember that God is with you and will give you the grace you need to face anything He allows into your life. 

“Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” Matthew 6:34