By Nicholas Hemming
When you fear the future, the struggle often feels all-consuming. “What ifs” seem to run wild in your mind. You strive to focus on the task at hand—but without fail, you surrender to a fear that feels insurmountable. What does tomorrow hold? What if the future feels hopeless?
While submitting your latest rent payment, you may fear living paycheck to paycheck for the rest of your life. As you prepare for another move, you may fear loneliness or isolation. After an unsuccessful dating relationship, you may fear life as a single person, without a spouse to love and cherish.
Regardless of the circumstance, it seems impossible to move away from this fear. The future makes you freeze; thoughts of tomorrow, and the next day, unearth unmanageable anxiety. You want to have a hopeful, confident outlook, though at this point, you only feel grief and uncertainty. You wonder if your anxiety about the future will ever pass.
In these moments, turn to God’s Word for encouragement, comfort and hope. Depend on the Lord as you wrestle with anxiety about the future. And continually seek him through prayer as you work to overcome your fear. These five Psalms will get you started:
Psalm 23:4 (GNTD)
Even if I go through the deepest darkness,
I will not be afraid, Lord,
for you are with me.
Your shepherd’s rod and staff protect me.
Psalm 34:4 (GNTD)
I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me;
he freed me from all my fears.
Psalm 55:22 (GNTD)
Leave your troubles with the Lord,
and he will defend you;
he never lets honest people be defeated.
Psalm 94:19 (GNTD)
Whenever I am anxious and worried,
you comfort me and make me glad.
Psalm 121:1-2 (GNTD)
I look to the mountains;
where will my help come from?
My help will come from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Nicholas Hemming serves as a Content Specialist with American Bible Society. As a child of Southern New Hampshire, he grew up exploring hidden towns along the rocky New England coast. Though he now resides in Philadelphia, PA, he continues to curiously explore his home—and the towns, cities and countries that lay beyond his home.
Joe
The Closet Professor 
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