In God I trust
Psalms 56:4 - This psalm of David is powerful anti-anxiety medicine, requiring only true faith to work.
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“In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”
Psalms 56:4 NIV
Satan, politicians, and the media in our age all know one thing very well: they can control people more easily when they keep them in fear. The media is especially guilty of this, with constant updates about everything, and there’s rarely any good news. It’s always something bad that’s going to result in the worst things happening to YOU.
A quick internet search found these statistics: About 47% of Americans—nearly half—report being in a “constant” or ongoing state of worry, effectively saying they feel anxious “often” or “always.” In a recent survey of 2,000 U.S. adults, 47% described this constant state of worry, with younger generations (62% of Gen Z and millennials) being especially affected.
This isn’t just something that affects non-believers. In our intercessory prayer group, we find many requests (when they’re not asking for “stuff” from God…) for prayers to help stop worrying. This psalm of David is powerful anti-anxiety medicine, requiring only true faith to work.
David begins with the words “In God, whose word I praise”, showing his deep trust in God’s word — the promises, commands, and revelations found in Scripture. David is expressing his belief in the truth and infallibility of God’s Word. Here he is worshipping God, praising His word, and acknowledging His divine authority.
The heart of this psalm can be found in the next phrase — “in God I trust and am not afraid”. David is able to sing out his fearlessness because he trusts absolutely in God. As humans, we experience fear as a normal response to uncertainty and danger. Only a solid confidence in the protection and sovereignty of God can push that fear away. David’s life was full of situations that could have turned him into a very nervous and fearful person, but he chose faith over fear.
The psalm ends with the rhetorical question “What can mere mortals do to me?” Other humans can do a lot to physically harm us or cause emotional distress, and they can even kill us! Even in that last worst-case scenario, those people cannot derail God’s plans, nor can they separate believers from His love. In the New Testament, we find this same perspective revealed in Romans 8:38-39:
”For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
David understood — as should every believer — that God’s dominion over His creation is infinitely greater than the even the greatest powers created by mankind. Like David, we should always choose faith over fear.
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Lord, on this day and every day, I am thankful to You for many things. I thank You that You are the sovereign God of the universe, in Whom I have placed my faith and trust. I thank You for David and his wonderful songs of faith, as he demonstrated his trust in You in every psalm. I thank You that I have nothing to fear from any human or from Satan’s allies, for in Your Word You have promised to keep me safe from all evils and those who oppose Your followers. In You I trust, and I am not afraid. I praise Your holy name, AMEN.
Scripture quotations taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica US, Inc.®. Used by permission.
BibleHub was accessed on June 29, 2025 for commentary on Psalms 56:4