One of the scariest things to happen to me occurred in the safety of my own home recently.

My husband and I had gotten our kids to bed and were headed downstairs to watch a movie. As we flicked on the lights in the living room, my husband paused and looked quizzically at the ceiling—before something fluttery and dark shot straight at my face! Screaming, I grabbed a pillow and swung blindly. Within a few seconds, we realized it was a fist-sized BAT flapping wildly around the contained space.

Instead of assisting my husband in coolly calculating bat removal strategies, I shrieked incoherently, grabbed a blanket, tossed it over my head, and curled into the fetal position while fruitlessly swiping at the air now and then.

My husband saved the day by scooping the bat up with a lidded bowl and tossing the whole lot outside. The children, now awake and standing rapt on the steps, cheered with relief. I was so grateful that my husband had rescued us from the unpredictable terror of a bat. He was our hero!

This scary incident reminded me of a Bible passage from the book of Exodus that states, “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still” (14:14). While this passage was spoken by an ancient prophet named Moses as he and his fellow people were on the run from vengeful soldiers, it remains a timeless promise from God that we can cling to amidst the unpredictable terror of our everyday lives.

While we don’t usually have startled bats or antiquated armies pursuing us, each of us battles plenty of other things: temptations to watch shady videos on our phones, unkind thoughts, discontentment with what we have, thinking only about ourselves, financial problems, relational problems, health problems, and accidents. The devil never stops trying to pull us away from God.

In times like these, we often wish we could stand on our own and defend ourselves, but the threats before us are too big. In the face of temptation, we often cave in. We can’t keep God’s laws on our own. We can’t be good enough. We can’t save ourselves. In the face of trouble, all we can do is curl up uselessly on the floor.

That’s where we were when God—our protector, our Savior, and our defender—rushed in. He knew we couldn’t fight on our own. In Colossians 2:13 it says, “When you were dead in your sins . . . God made you alive in Christ.” God saw how helpless we were and sent Jesus to be a perfect stand-in for us. When Jesus lived a perfect life, his holiness blanketed our shame. When Jesus died unfairly on a cross, our fear of death was crucified with it. When a victorious Jesus rose from the dead, our hope of heaven became a fact. His heroic work protected us from every worry—and all we have to do is be still and trust in Christ’s almighty protection!

I loved my husband for saving me from that bat; it felt good to be protected by his strength. And yet, his heroics are just a glimmer of the immense protection you and I have access to every day through faith in the saving work of our invincible hero, Jesus.

God is strong enough to save you from whatever problem entangles you. Psalm 32:7 says, “You [God] are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” It’s okay to have times when you feel like you need to curl up on the floor. The problems you face loom large. In those moments, give those battles to God and trust in his power. Let God fight for you. There’s nothing so wonderful as being protected!