You are in a hard place just now, and the fear has crept in so thick that you can scarcely see through it. Your very eyes, the windows of the soul, threaten to darken, and that is a trial that cuts deep. But listen, do not let the dread swallow you whole. The Lord Jesus is nearer than you know. He is the Beloved Physician, and the healing power that was in Him when He walked among men has not spent itself. That same hand that touched the blind eyes and flooded them with light is stretched out still. He knows your frame; He knows your terror; and He does not turn away from you.
I think of Peter’s little house, a humble place, no palace, yet the Lord went in and made it honourable. But it was a house of sickness first: the woman there lay with a great fever burning her up. Jesus did not stand at the door and send a word; He came to her bedside, took her by the hand, and the fever fled. So He will come to you. Where the fever is, the Physician comes. Where the fear sinks deep, the Consoler draws near. Do not imagine He is a hard master who must be won by brave words. He sees the wringing of your hands and the quick pulse of your fright, and He pities you with an almighty tenderness.
You are staring into a future full of shifting shadows, and your heart cries, “What if the light goes altogether?” I will not tell you it is a small thing, for it is not. But I will tell you that even in the thick darkness you will not be left alone. The Shepherd does not abandon the trembling lamb because the night falls. He says again and again, “Fear not.” Scatter those words through your waking hours, “Fear thou not, for I am with thee.” He does not desire His children to be paralysed with dread. He would have you speak to Him as a little child speaks to its father in the dark, with a hand that clings because it trusts. Your hand in His, that is better than perfect eyesight without Him.
And remember, His healing work often begins within. The soul’s cure is the first miracle, and from there the body’s healing may flow. Even now He can lay His cool hand upon your fevered fears and give a peace that passes all your thinking. The leaves of the Tree of Life are for the healing of the nations, and they never drop, never wither. Christ’s power is still a power to heal, not to break, not to upbraid, but to mend. So lift your head, dear heart. The great Redeemer who died for you lives for you, and He will bring you through.
We pray: Lord Jesus, Physician of our souls and bodies, draw near to this frightened one. Still the storm within. Touch these poor eyes with Thy renewing power, if it be Thy will; but above all, fix the gaze of the heart upon Thyself, where death and fear are swallowed up. Thou art with us always. Hold Thy child fast. Amen.