After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness. (Genesis 15)
This is the first appearance of that oft-repeated injuction to "stop being afraid." The LORD had Abram pegged; he was scared. Understandably so. God had led him out of his homeland to some scary situations. Most recently, in the chapter preceeding this one, he had seen Sodom and Gomorrah leveled, and then he had this prophet/priest/king of a man, Melchizedek, come and bless him, and offer him whatever he wanted. But what Abram really wanted was a family. He had a plan - not a good one - which God refutes here. He begins by saying "I know that you are scared. I am your shield. Your reward is coming." Abram is still having trouble believing he will ever have a son, but God shows and tells him he will. And he, the "father of faith", as he is often called, believes God. God knows our fears. He says "you can stop now." Even though we cannot see the future, He can. Even though we have doubts and uncertainties; He is the same. He will see us through. May we have His words in our minds: Fear not.
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