The LORD is my light and my salvation– whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life– of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

“I’m scared.”

We’ve been hearing more of that recently from our 8 year old adopted daughter, Katelyn. There are monsters at bedtime and she’s afraid of bugs and snakes.

Snakes? We don’t have snakes. Yes, Justin saw a snake once, but that was 5 years ago and it was a garter snake that was 4 inches long. Nice job, Justin. Why did you have to tell her THAT story?

She’s also has a lot of questions about death.

Will she die? Will mommy die? What happens when you die? When will we die? In our family who will die first?

“Probably Pepper.” I respond. He’s our dog. She is less than comforted and glances over at him as if she expects him to drop over any second. Starved for affection he wags his tail and begs for a treat.

Over the past 15 months we’ve been amazed at the resilience and strength of this little girl. How traumatic it must have been to come from an orphanage in China to a strange family (no snide comments, now), in a strange country with strange food and a different language. It boggles the mind!

As Katie relaxes and begins to unpack her emotions, it is no surprise that fears surface. They’ve been bottled up for a long time! When you are on your own you hardly have the luxury of indulging in fear. As a family we have the privelege to provide a safe place for her to express and deal with fear. We constantly point to our heavely Father who is our light, salvation and fortress. In time, she will come to discover that her place in our family and her place in God’s family is secure. Jesus is her friend and brother and God is worthy of our trust. It will be a long process of releasing and trusting

As believers, all of us struggle with fear; not a fear of height or bugs necessarily, but fears shaped by our own particular life’s journey. In places where we have experienced loss or insecurity, fear often emerges.

God is my light, my salvation and the stronghold of my life.

Can you say that?

As we rest in God our fortress we can release our fears to him and find that he is more than able to carry them.