Diary of a Ghetto Priest | Be not afraid, turn to the Father

The Father is our Father - He really exists! He is the Great One! In His hands, He holds the mountains, the trees, the rivers, the sun and moon, and stars. Nothing exists without Him. In a moment. He can cover the earth in darkness. In a snap of a finger, the world can crumble and be destroyed.

Great is our God! As Baruch says, "For God has ordered that every high mountain and the everlasting hills be made low and the valleys filled up, to make level ground, so that Israel may walk safely in the glory of God. The woods and every fragrant tree have shaded Israel at God's command. For God will lead Israel with joy, in the light of His glory, with the mercy and righteousness that come from Him." (5:7-9).

I fear, I tremble. I pray. I pray. I pray. God is so great. But I am weak. I am no man; I am a worm. I am frail. When I think what men - powerful men and women - can do, when I think of the evil and wickedness in man's heart, when I think of the laughter and the scorn, when I gaze at their worldliness and total rejection of God's ways, I tremble.

If I gaze at His deeds, however, the greatness of what He has created and the promises He has made of everlasting life, I want to listen to Him, no matter how I have to suffer at the hands of men.

CHRIST IS COMING

But wait - there is a star up in the sky! Christ is coming! It is the second coming! The great God is coming!

I must concentrate on Him. Even if I am cut down from this life and evil men try to destroy me, my great and loving God, who is Lord of all the world, will protect me. As Isaiah 41:13-20 says, "...Do not fear, I will help you. Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you insect Israel! I will help you... . Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. Now, I will make of you a threshing sledge, sharp, new, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff... .

"When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the Lord will answer them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive; I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane and the pine together, so that all may see and know, all may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it."

Our business is to gaze upon the power of God and absorb all power from Him. Speak in truth! Live in truth! There is only one true God! He will be your Protector and your almighty God! Do not, therefore, be afraid in your times of trouble, but turn to Him, our Father! BE NOT AFRAID, TURN TO THE FATHER!