DEVOTION / Don't fear the depths
The ocean is extremely deep. And dangerous. The average ocean depth is 2.3 miles. At its deepest, the ocean floor is 6.8 miles beneath its surface.
The ocean depths
Humans are only able to explore the deepest parts of the ocean when they are protected by heavily fortified submersibles. At the bottom of the ocean, water exerts 16,000 pounds of pressure on every square inch of a surface. If an African male elephant were to put all its weight on your big toe, it would only exert about 13,000 pounds of pressure.
Still, humans face that danger. Dawn Wright regularly descends into the near-freezing, dark depths of the ocean to map the ocean floor. Is she afraid? Wright answers, "My answer is no. I put my faith completely in this technology and in [the submersible captain's] skill in operating it." (Read more about Dawn Wright here.)
Life’s depths
God's Word urges us not to fear hundreds of times.
No matter how deeply we have descended into life's "darkest valley," our Good Shepherd says don't fear.
No matter what amount of pressure seems about to crush us, our Father says don't fear.
No matter how uncharted the terrain we are inching through, the Spirit says don't fear.
Nothing to fear
Why don't we have anything to fear?
"The Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline," Paul reminded Timothy and us. "He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace… through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel" (1 Timothy 7-10).
Grace’s guarantees
Jesus has rescued us from the worst of fears — the fear of death, eternal punishment, and never-ending hell. Jesus' cross and empty tomb guarantee that he will embolden us to stand against every lesser fear.
We Christians find the courage to face life because our all-powerful and always-loving God wraps his fortified arms around us. In Jesus, he has brought us from the darkest depths of life to the highest heights of heaven. He is both our submersible and its captain.
We're not afraid. God is with us.