"Yea, though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me."Psalm 23:4
There is a childhood prayer I recall. " Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take."
Child-like faith expressed in that prayer is often sadly lost in growing up, unless the adult holds on to it. If faith is maintained, the fear of death is replaced by the comfort of the expectation of heaven.
A psychiatrist said, "I have never seen a case of senile psychosis in the aged when they have faith in God and are free from the fear of death."
The fear of death is usually wrapped up in the fear of old age. When such fears are surrendered in the hands of God, faith rises for an exciting adventure in old age and at the time of death.
When we are young we live like we will never die. As we age, we begin to think about where we will spend eternity. Sometimes the death of a loved one will prompt serious thoughts about our own mortality. Inner fears cannot be concealed. They show, even when one pretends they are not there.God sees what is in our hearts. Does fear show through our attempts of bravado?
Ask Jesus: To walk with us through the valley of the shadow of death. He faced and defeated the power of death and the fear of it. He renamed the valley after Himself, "The Way."
PRAYER: Lord, when the time comes for me to go into eternity, I will not walk alone You have promised to be with me all the way. If fear attacks, You will ward it off by your resurrection power. You are The Way. Thank you Jesus! Amen