The Peace that Drives Out Fear

“Peace be with you.” – John 20:19

As ten of Jesus’ 12 disciples gathered in a locked room on Easter evening, they were filled with fear. Only one of them, Peter, had seen the resurrected Jesus, and only John believed Peter’s story. The other eight still didn’t believe Jesus was really alive.

But ALL of the disciples were scared. They were huddled behind a locked door because they were afraid that the Jewish leaders who tortured and killed Jesus would come after them next. And, of course, Jesus knew they were afraid. So, when He appeared to them in the room, His first words to them were: “Peace be with you” (John 20:19).

 And how did the disciples react to seeing Jesus in the room—which he apparently entered without using the door? John doesn’t record their initial reaction, but Luke tells us that “they were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost” (Luke 24:37). Even after Jesus showed His disciples the wounds in His hands and feet, they still had doubts. Finally, Jesus convinced them, by eating a piece of broiled fish, that He was truly there in the flesh. And at last, John tells us, “The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord” (John 20:20).

 In a few short minutes, the disciples’ fear was replaced by peace, and their doubts were dispelled by evidence-based faith. In verse 21, Jesus reiterated His offer of peace. Then He added: “As the Father has sent Me, I am sending you.” That night, more than ever before, the disciples were transformed into apostles. Jesus’ followers become leaders; His evangelized become evangelists; and His students become teachers. The ones who left their small corner of the world to come TO Jesus would now be sent into a bigger corner of the world to be missionaries FOR Jesus.

From this exciting passage, we can draw these life lessons:

Lesson #1: Jesus is ready to replace your fear with His peace and joy. In 1 John 4:8, John tells us that “God is love.” And 10 verses later he tells us, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18). Put those two truths together: Jesus Christ is love, and He drives out our fear. So, if you and I are living in fear, we are not as full of Jesus as we should be. I encourage you to lay your fears at the feet of Jesus.

Lesson #2: Jesus is in the sending business, and He has sent you to be His missionary in your corner of the world. If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance that you are a Christian. But you may not realize that you are a “sent” Christian. You have been chosen by Christ, and you have been sent by Christ. So, start talking like you’ve been sent by Jesus. Start behaving like you’ve been sent by Jesus. And start loving the people around you and sharing the Gospel with them like you’ve been sent by Jesus. Christ has called you to live sent.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church, meeting Sundays at 8:30 and 10 a.m. at 16209 Kamana Road in Apple Valley.

Will the Church Survive COVID-19?

“I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” - Matthew 16:18

It’s been about a month and a half since thousands of churches across America re-launched in-person services. After two and a half months without Christian fellowship, you would think that Christians would have flooded back into their church buildings. But they didn’t. Instead, a large number of Christians across our nation have chosen NOT to return to church yet. As a pastor, that really concerns me.

Now, due to California’s current surge in COVID cases, the governor has issued an order to suspend indoor operations of several businesses and organizations in hard-hit counties, including all of Southern California. The order applies to salons, shopping malls, family entertainment centers … and churches. This presents another setback to churches that were just getting back on their feet. Many churches are not set up for live outdoor services. Some churches are simply too large. Since gatherings are limited to 100 people, even if only half of a congregation of 3,000 wanted to attend a live service, that church would have to offer 15 services every weekend to handle everyone.

And it leads to the question: Will Christ’s church survive COVID?

The clear-cut answer is in the first book of the New Testament. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus says, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Hades is the holding tank of the dead and it’s also the precursor to Hell. So, Jesus is basically saying, “I will build my church, and death won’t overcome it AND Hell won’t overcome it. Nothing in this life or in the life to come will stop me from building my church.” Will Christ’s church survive COVID? The answer is…Yes! Absolutely! There’s no doubt about it.

But now each of us needs to answer a harder, more personal question: Will YOUR FAITH survive COVID? Many of us who follow Christ don’t always realize how vital the church is to our spiritual health. Staying strong in our faith requires encouragement, accountability and community. Christians who become isolated from the church, because of COVID-19 or for any other reason, tend to become stagnant in their faith and drift away from Christ. Our faith rarely grows in isolation. That’s one of the main reasons Jesus started his church in the first place. For our faith to endure and grow, we need the encouragement and accountability of other Christians.

Now, I realize that some Christians can’t attend an outdoor, in-person church service right now: seniors living in a retirement community, those with health issues or mobility issues, members of large churches or of churches that are not yet equipped for outdoor services. If you’re in one of these situations, PLEASE … keep attending online—every weekend. Online church is the next best thing to going to an in-person worship service, especially if you keep it interactive. Leave a word of encouragement for other attenders online. Reach out to a prayer counselor or pastor and ask them to pray with you, online or by phone. Keep the communication going both ways.

But while some of you CAN’T attend in-person church services, many of you can. Outdoor church services are available in the Victor Valley (our outdoor service at Impact being just one of them). Many of us are scared of contracting the coronavirus or, God forbid, giving it to someone else. I get it! It’s true that the chances of contracting COVID-19 or passing it onto someone else is much lower if you are in isolation. But at some point you need to ask yourself: What are the risks to my physical and emotional and spiritual health if I don’t go to church? To you I would say this: “Please don’t allow fear to keep you away from church.” 2 Timothy 1:7 says, “For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.”

Every time we get out of bed in the morning, there’s a certain amount of risk. Every time we walk out the front door or get into a car or eat at Del Taco, there’s a certain amount of risk. But for years we’ve taken those risks because the benefits of going out and living for the glory of God far outweighed those risks.

The same is true during this pandemic. I can’t guarantee that you won’t contract COVID if you attend a live outdoor worship service, just as I can’t guarantee that you won’t get food poisoning if you drive through Burger King. There is a certain amount of risk involved in every choice we make as we live our lives here on earth. But my wife and I decided long ago that the benefit of prioritizing church for our family each week far outweighs the risks involved, especially since our church is following many of the CDC guidelines to lower the risk.

Bottom line: I want your faith to survive this pandemic. So, one way or another, make church a priority for you and your family every single week. If possible, be at an in-person worship service every week. That’s the best way to do church. But if that’s not possible, make online services a priority for you and your family every week. It’s critical that your faith survives COVID-19, and your kids’ faith survives COVID-19. And the best chance of that happening is by worshiping with other believers each and every week.

2,000 years before it was popular to say, “We’re all in this together,” Jesus was saying it to his church. If you are a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, then it’s never just about “you and Jesus.” It’s about “us and Jesus.” We’re in this adventure of faith … together.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. Please join us for our live outdoor worship service Sundays at 9 a.m. at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 10 a.m. at Live.GreaterImpact.cc, on our YouTube channel (Impact Christian Church) or on Facebook.

I Will Praise You in This Storm

“Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” 
- 2 Chronicles 20:15

Last week I heard the story of Johnny, a 5-year-old boy who was in the kitchen with his mom while she was making dinner. Johnny’s mom asked him to go into the walk-in pantry and get her a can of tomato soup—but he was afraid to go into the pantry alone. He protested, “Mommy, it’s dark in there, and I’m scared.” She waited a minute or so and asked him again, but he still said he was too scared. Finally she said, “It’s okay—Jesus will be in there with you.” So, Johnny walked hesitantly to the pantry door and slowly opened it. He peeked inside, saw that it was dark, and started to abort his mission. But then he had an idea. He faced the darkness of the inner pantry and called, “Jesus, if you’re in there, would you hand me that can of tomato soup?”

We all have times when we’re scared. I was scared when my wife was rushed in to the OR for an emergency c-section with our first daughter. I was scared when I saw my second daughter at the age of 2 fall head-first out of a shopping cart at the grocery store. I was scared a year ago when I passed out in an ICU patient’s room. And honestly, I’d be lying if I said that I don’t find this whole coronavirus pandemic to be a bit scary.

King Jehoshaphat of Judah experienced fear, too. At the beginning of 2 Chronicles 20, he got the news that three nations—Moab, Ammon and Edom—had formed a vast army to make war on his kingdom. Moab and Ammon were located to the east of Judah, and Edom was located to the south. These enemies joined together somewhere south of the Dead Sea and began moving north toward Jerusalem. As the three armies made their way to within 50 miles of Jehoshaphat’s doorstep, there’s no doubt about it: Jehoshaphat was worried, and he was scared. So, what did he do?

Jehoshaphat rallied his people to call out to the Lord in prayer. He asked the nation to fast and pray, and that’s exactly what the people of Judah did. As he led his people in prayer, Jehoshaphat acknowledged that God rules over heaven and earth. He reminded God of the promise He had made to his great, great grandfather King Solomon after the temple was dedicated: If God’s people would humbly turn to God and cry out to Him for deliverance, God would hear them and save them (vs. 6-12). And we’re told in verse 13 that it wasn’t just the men’s Bible study group, or the women’s prayer group, who stood humbly praying before the LORD. It was everyone--men, women, children and even little toddler—all crying out to God.

In response, God calmed Jehoshaphat’s fears by sharing with him the same four words that He repeats time and time again to His worried followers: “Do not be afraid.” It’s the most repeated command in the Bible. “Do not be afraid” appears more than 100 times in the pages of Scripture. When God commissioned Joshua to lead the Israelites, he said, “Do not be afraid.” When the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, he told her, “Do not be afraid.” When Jesus appeared to the women on Resurrection Sunday, guess what he told them? “Do not be afraid.” Over and over and over again in Scripture, God tells His followers, “Fear not! Do not be afraid.” And that’s what God told Jehoshaphat.

The next morning, his army marched out to the battlefield. Jehoshaphat gave his people a rousing pep talk: “Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld” (v. 20). Then he did something very strange. According to verse 21, Jehoshaphat put a praise team at the head of his army. And this praise team had one task: “to sing to the LORD and to praise him for splendor of His holiness.”

As Jehoshaphat’s army marched toward the battlefield, the hillsides were filled with the sound of voices singing, “Give thanks to the LORD, for His love endures forever.” And as men of God leading the army of God praised God, the Spirit of God was catapulted by their praise onto the battlefield, turning Judah’s enemies against each other. On that battlefield, the LORD won the victory without Jehoshaphat’s army having to lift a single sword. Praise has the ability to defy the odds and win victories in Jesus’ name!

2 Chronicles 20 reminds us that when we as God’s people humble ourselves before the LORD and pray … as we lift our voices in grateful praise to Him … there is power in our praise. It’s our job to trust God, love God, and obey His word. And part of that obedience involves praising Him. So, regardless of how crazy the circumstances around us are …we praise God. Because He is always good. He is always strong. He is always faithful. And He ALWAYS comes through.

Like Jehoshaphat, when a vast enemy—or a highly contagious virus—is bearing down on us, we tend to get nervous. And we tend to get frightened. But when that fear grips us, we need to do what Jehoshaphat did: We need to take our worries and fears to God. The battle belongs to the LORD.

Dane Davis is the Pastor of Impact Christian Church. During this COVID-19 outbreak, please join us for our online worship service Sundays at 10 a.m. Simply go to www.GreaterImpact.cc to view the service on our homepage.

The Power of Praise

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

These verses from 1 Thessalonians are three of the shortest in the New Testament. But they hold an important key to unlocking the door of life-changing prayer. Whether our circumstances are good, bad or ugly, God calls us to give thanks. And as we work to strengthen our prayer lives in this new year, I’d like to share three reasons praise is so powerful.

#1: Praise helps us fulfill our destiny. Did you know that God created you to praise Him? It’s true. To quote the wise philosopher Darth Vader, “It is … your destiny.” Praise is one of the main purposes for which you were created. The Bible tells us that creation itself praises God: “The wild animals honor Me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland” (Isaiah 43:20a). If even wild animals can honor God in their own wordless way, we have so much more reason to do so! “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).

Why did God choose us to be saved, bring us into His holy nation and into His eternal family? There were several reasons, but don’t miss this one: God saved us so that we can truly praise Him in a way that we could never praise Him before we were saved. And so, when we who are followers of Christ withhold our praises from God, we are forsaking one of the main reasons He saved us. Let’s don’t squander this privilege.

#2: Praise is a weapon to break spiritual strongholds outside us. Maybe you’ve never thought of praise as a weapon. But it can be a very powerful one. Look at what happened in Acts 16, when Paul and Silas were praising God in the Philippian jail after being stripped, beaten and fastened into stocks. As they were praying and singing hymns to God, “Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose” (Acts 16:26).

There is power in praise. Spiritual strongholds outside us can be broken through praise and thanks. When everyone in your family is down in the dumps, there is power in praising God. Your praise can transform their doom-and-gloom perspectives. When you have a close encounter with pessimists who can only see the negative in their circumstances, your praise can help them see the silver lining. And when you’re in church, you never know how many people around you may be uplifted, encouraged and even set free by your praise.

#3: Praise is a weapon to break spiritual strongholds inside us. Your praise can not only transform others – it can also transform you. In 2 Chronicles, King Jehoshaphat learned that three enemy nations had merged their armies and were marching toward Jerusalem. This combined army was massive, so when Jehoshaphat found out about it he was terrified. But instead of panicking, he started praising—and called his men to do the same. “After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise Him for the splendor of His holiness as they went out at the head of the army saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD, for His love endures forever’” (2 Chronicles 6:21). The result? God set ambushes that caused the three armies to turn on each other. When Jehoshaphat and his men arrived at the scene, they found nothing but dead bodies.

Isn’t that awesome? As God’s people sang and praised God their own fears were calmed, their own anxieties were quieted, and their faith was emboldened. As an added bonus, as the people praised God, God’s Spirit was catapulted onto the battlefield, and He won the victory without His own people having to raise a single sword. Without a doubt, praise is a powerful weapon to break strongholds outside us AND to break strongholds inside us. So, whether you’re dealing with internal strongholds of fear, anxiety, anger, lust, jealousy or unforgiveness—whatever it is—praising God for who He is and thanking Him for what He’s done can transform you from the inside out.

Maybe you’re facing some impossible circumstance. You’ve tried EVERYTHING to fix it, and nothing has worked. Well, could it be that the Lord is whispering in your ear: “You haven’t tried everything. You haven’t tried praise. You haven’t praised Me in the midst of your storm. You haven’t thanked Me for your lousy circumstances. You haven’t released your circumstances to Me and trusted Me to handle them. So, start praising Me! Start thanking Me! Start trusting Me! And just watch what I will do.”

Dane Davis is the Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,

visit www.YourVictorvilleChurch.com  and join us for worship Sundays at 10 am.