When we watch the news or read the paper, we’re constantly bombarded by stories of crime and murders. Focusing on these reports can have an adverse effect on our mental health and frighten us into thinking our protection is solely up to us. This would be true if we didn’t factor God into the equation. When we trust in Him, He makes us an irrevocable promise of perfect safety on which we can stake our very lives.

In the Old Testament, God’s people had to rely on Him for protection against enemies who were much stronger and more powerful than them. The people often were outnumbered and outmatched on the physical level, but their enemies didn’t count on the supernatural level. When they assembled themselves against Jehoshaphat and the children of Israel, God reassured His people of victory. “And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s…Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you” (2 Chronicles 20:15, 17). The people trusted God, and their enemies were slaughtered with no survivors.

This has some important takeaways for us today. When we face scary situations that look as if they’re too much for us to handle, trusting in God’s ability and willingness to protect and deliver us brings powerful results. We can rely on ourselves or we can rely on a higher power. “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God” (Psalm 20:7, NIV). No evil can prevail over us when we stand still and let God, Himself, fight our battles.

When we see trouble on the horizon, He’ll protect us. If we’re already in it, He’ll deliver us. When we’re in the midst of something, we must focus on how we’ll get out of the dilemma. “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him” (Psalm 91:15). God makes a way when there is no way.

God’s pledge to rescue us when we call to Him for help brings real results. Many of us can remember tough situations that made us feel helpless and alone, and the only thing we could think of to do was pray. Regardless of what anyone may tell us, prayerfully asking Him for protection isn’t a sign of weakness, but of strength. “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them…Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all” (Psalm 34:7, 19). God will never ignore a request offered up to Him in faith.

God is unshakeable and immovable, and He’s stronger than any fortress we could ever build for ourselves. “For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?” (Psalm 18:31, NKJV). His mercy and love is infinite, and He’ll never let us down when we depend on Him for our security. The debilitating, paralyzing fear that roams the world has no power over us when we make God our protector.