Don't Be Afraid

Addressing a list of specific people is how Brandon Heath builds "Don't Be Afraid." The verses speak "for the one who's searching in the dark," "the one whose world just fell apart," "the one pulled over in your car," and "the one who keeps it all inside" or "says, no, I'm just fine." Each time the line ends with the same instruction, "don't be afraid."

The reason for that comfort comes in the chorus: "You gave Him your heart, He's keeping it safe. When you're in the dark, caught up in the fray, wherever you are, whatever you face, you're held in the arms that nothing can break." The thought of arms that cannot be broken is close to John 10:28 and Romans 8:39, and "wherever you are" matches Deuteronomy 31:8.

The bridge turns the comfort into a short run of commands: "don't lose faith, don't lose heart, He is with you wherever you are, don't give up when you fall apart." The wording is similar to Isaiah 41:10, with its "fear not, for I am with you." Many of the people named are tired or silent, so the song works as a direct answer to private fear, ending on "He is with you."