Devotional: Calm, cool and collected

Be careful, be calm, and don’t be afraid. Isaiah 7:4

King Ahaz had reason to be concerned.  Three armies were colluding against him.  It seemed that the fall of his city was inevitable.  Scripture says that he and his companion’s hearts were melting within them.  God sent the prophet Isaiah to meet him and explain that the three armies would not prevail.  Then he gave this command:  “Be careful, be calm, and don’t be afraid.”

When we are “out doing something for God” we are focused; we are desperate for God to do transformative things. But once a particular mission is completed, it is easy to let one’s guard down thinking the battle is over. Problems we have held at bay for weeks now stare us in the face. This is no less true for me than for you.  So after a recent Venture this same word was spoken to me. “Be careful, be calm, and don‘t be afraid.” I wondered why the prophet started with “be careful.” Perhaps verse 9 answers the question. “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.”  

This is a clear warning. I think it is showing us that we must be careful, not so much of outside pressure, but of our own posture of faith. Once God says something, we still have a part to play.

Be calm. We have urged one another to commit our businesses to God. We have encouraged clients, especially, to trust God with their labors while they focus on repurposing their businesses. The same truth applies to consultants:  trust, and be calm.

Fear robs us of the joy of victory. That which has been true on a Venture is also true when we head back to our regular place of work. God shows us his faithfulness and power for two weeks so that we can expect and see those same things in the other 50 weeks of the year. “Do not be afraid.”

So the promise followed by a condition that King Ahaz stand firm. God’s job was to defeat the enemy. The king’s job was to believe God, standing on what God had said. You too are a king.

Reflections

• What does “be careful” look like in your situation?
  
  
• How can you be careful and calm, cautious without becoming fearful?