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Fear is nothing, but it has great influence.
Paul writes to Timothy: “God will never give you the spirit of fear, but the Holy Spirit who gives you mighty power, love, and self-control.” – 2 Timothy 1:7 (TPT)
All of us deal with fear. I used to think that if I was the spiritual giant that a pastor should be, I would not have fear. Then I would worry about paying for my credit card. I would proclaim God’s protection and then not sleep when my teenage daughters were out at night.
I found that if I ran at my fears, instead of worrying, I had no reason to fear. For example: “Barbara, I’m concerned about paying for the credit card.” Barbara: “How long have you had a credit card, and have you ever not been able to pay it?” Me: “Okay, no reason to fear.”
Another example, me to daughter: “What did you do last night?” Daughter: “We went to a friend’s house for a prayer meeting.” Me: “And I stayed awake last night??!!”
Fear can be more difficult – dealing with a difficult co-worker, a legitimate health crisis, an unexpected and overwhelming financial need. End time prophecy in the Bible speaks of “men fainting from fear about the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world.” (Luke 21:26) Please note “about the expectation”, not necessarily actual fear!
Serious and not so serious fear have the same antidote – run at your fear.
Don’t:
- Put it off till tomorrow. Especially easy to do when you don’t want to talk to someone!
- Think you can pull it off by yourself. You can’t. The New Testament says “one another” 46 times simply because we really do need one another.
- Ignore it. Fear takes control when ignored.
- Manipulate. I’ve watched too many saints try to manipulate others or a situation from insecurity.
The evil one prowls constantly seeking someone to devour. At every age of our lives we will deal with a different type of fear. The fear of a 10-year-old is different than the fear of a 20-year-old, which is different than the fear of a 40-year-old, and a 60-year-old has another type of fear.
The evil one knows you better than you know yourself. He will have you worry about friends when you are 14; college and dating when you are 20; career and children at 30; middle age and new health issues at 45; and retirement, health, and money at 65.
We need to run at the fears of our age and then be ready to run again when we are older. If you are overwhelmed by fear at 60 maybe you are dealing with the 60 fear with the same lessons that you learned at 20. The fear is different. Your defense must evolve.
Fear has no substance. Why should we fear anything when the God of the universe dwells within us through the Spirit? Walking in the fulness of God’s Spirit defeats fear. Peace is found in a continuing and developing relationship with Jesus. John writes: “Perfect love casts our fear.” – 1 John 4:8
You may think there is an issue with someone that you are close to; you don’t talk to them. The issue grows through your insecurity and fantasy; you finally talk and find its nothing. Often the matter ends by you apologizing to the other person after unjustly accusing them.
Same with fear. A relationship God allows access to truth, power, and resources. The fear is nothing in the light of God’s love.
When I say run at fear I mean run through fear to the Father. Through His grace and mercy, He will show you how to defeat the fear that you have now.