Living Without Fear

              Living Without Fear

                              By

                               Barbara Thayer

 

    Ever since the first lockdown took place in our nation over a year ago due to the COVID19 virus, many of us have experienced anxiety over the unknown as we heard about people dying from this terrible disease.  It seemed like reports changed daily as to how to avoid it, how long it would last, and when it might be safe to re-open businesses.  For us, the isolation ended as we returned to home group and finally worship services once again just recently. This was a high point for us after the months of remaining at home. Oh, we still take precautions, but we refuse to let fear dominate our lives as we follow the Lord’s guidance in matters.

    We all will acknowledge that fear is a paralyzing emotion.  When it takes hold, we cannot use our reasoning abilities given to us by God.  Unfortunately, Satan knows this very well, and tries hard to feed us with things that cause us to doubt God and His power. This is how sin first came into the world as Satan caused Eve to doubt God’s good will toward them.  He made it seem to Eve as though God did not want her to have the knowledge of good and evil.  God was holding out on them; so the woman took matters into her own hands.  As a result, both she and her husband disobeyed God and fell into sin. Now they lived in fear of His judgment.

    While we don’t have Satan whispering in our ear as he did in the Garden with Eve, we do have many other tools he can use that can pull us away from trusting in God.  For example, we have to be careful of misinformation spread on the internet, in the news or over the air waves.  In my own situation, I belong to a number of social media sites so I can interact with friends.  However, one of the drawbacks comes from people spreading questionable information about conspiracies, vaccines, and groups of people.  If all these things were to be believed, we would never leave our house, never seek medical treatment, and have little to no contact with other human beings.  Yet, this is not what God has called us to do.  2 Timothy 1:7 tells us:  “For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love and a self-control.”  Paul was trying to encourage Timothy in this passage to stir up the gift within him and not be overcome by fear.

    In another letter to the Roman church, Paul wrote this about fear:  “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” Here Paul is reminding his fellow believers that the spirit of slavery is our fear of death and final punishment. However, we have been set free as Christians from this fear and can draw near to God intimately.

    Another letter written by the Apostle John ( I John 4:18) proclaims the freedom we have from fear when we know the love of God:  “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.  For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” Through Christ, we have salvation and the outpouring of God’s love through forgiveness. This casts out all fear so why do we get entangled in it?

    Let me suggest that we turn off that T.V. and social media for a while.  Quit listening to the opinions of others.  This world is full of different persuasions on any subject.  We are called to live by faith not fear.  Seek the Lord and His wisdom and understanding on issues of importance.  Don’t spend time running from one opinion to another or you will find yourself in a knot of anxiety. God has given us a sound mind with which to reason and His Holy Spirit to teach us in His Word. He has also given to us godly men and women that can pray with us for discernment. Most of all, let us lean upon the Lord Jesus who told us not to worry in Matthew 6:25-34. Remember that fear puts a wedge between God and us when we yield to this form of slavery. May we pray instead:  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths” (Prov. 3:5-6).  Selah!

His Steadfast Love

      When I go out on walks in the early morning, I never cease to be amazed at the beauty of God's creation.  Right now, in our neck of the woods, we are enjoying the blooming of many types of trees as spring comes quickly to Florida.  Red and magenta blossoms show their color along with a host of birds.  Some of them are heading back north while others are busy building nests.  All around us is proof through nature that our God is a Master craftsman                 

As I lifted my voice in prayer to the Lord today, I read Psalm 33 which proclaims the steadfast love of the Lord.  Verse 5 tells us:  "He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord."  We see His love poured out in the variety of life around us that we sometimes overlook in our busy day.  Knowing that He loves righteousness should make our hearts glad for this is what our poor world needs right now

     In verses 6-9, the Psalmist describes God's great creation and sovereignty over it all:  "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of His mouth all their host.  He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; He puts the deeps in storehouses.  Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him!  For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm."  Who but God could do this?  All of the breathtaking scenery around this great land of ours was made by a loving Creator.  He is the master artist. From the delicacy of a butterfly's wing to the beauty of a flower, God made all that we are privileged to see.  Sadly, many dismiss the notion of God even though we have evidence all around us of His ability to create life.  Man is the crown of His work, but man chose to rebel against God in the Garden.  Today, we see evidence of that plainly as we hear about murders, riots, and lawlessness.  Yet, despite man's rebellion, God is still sovereign over all the earth.

     Looking at verses 13-19 we see the Lord observing us from heaven.  He sees all the children of man for He fashioned their hearts and observes their deeds.  That's a scary thought if your life is being lived in rebellion to God, but a joyous thought if you belong to Him.  He knows us intimately from the beginning of our lives until the day He calls us home.

     As the Psalmist continues, he describes how kings trust in their armies, warriors in their strength and others in the strength of their war horse, but none of these can rescue man.  When a person comes to realize their sin and repents before God trusting in Jesus Christ as the risen Savior, that person passes from death to eternal life. They receive a new heart with which to enjoy and glory in the Lord forever.  Verse 18 says: "Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His steadfast love, that He may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine."  This is what the Lord wants for us that we might find joy in this life and have the certainty of heaven when our body dies.

     When our lives are hidden in Jesus Christ and we trust Him as our Savior, there is a greater depth of beauty in this world around us that opens up as we draw closer to Him.  His steadfast love will keep us even in the times of trial that come to all men.  Just as springtime comes with fresh blossoms and new foliage on the trees, so our lives open up to enjoy this life more abundantly when we give our hearts to Christ.  May this be our prayer today (vs. 22) "Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in You."  Selah!

Take it to the Lord in Prayer

     On my walk the other day, I encountered our neighbor.  We stopped to chat as we had not seen one another for quite some time.  With both our families grown now, we spoke of what our children were doing.  She made a great comment.  She said we may not have our children at home any longer to guide their way, but we do have the power of prayer we can lift up on their behalf each day.  What great insight because this is something that every Christian has at their disposal.  So why do we often neglect this?

     Prayer is merely talking to God.  There is nothing difficult or hard, but it cannot become a practice in our life unless we commit to spend time with the Lord on a daily basis.  I don't know whether it is laziness or apathy, but we often forfeit this privilege.  I am reminded of a great hymn with a simple truth "What a Friend We Have in Jesus":  

  What a Friend we have in Jesus,

  All our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry

  Everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit,

  O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry

  Everything to God in prayer!

2

Have we trials and temptations?

  Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged,

  Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful

  Who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our every weakness,

  Take it to the Lord in prayer.

3

Are we weak and heavy-laden,

  Cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Savior, still our refuge—

  Take it to the Lord in prayer;

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?

  Take it to the Lord in prayer;

In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,

  Thou wilt find a solace there. 

     Could there be any more encouraging words than these?  We forfeit peace, joy and relief from the pain of walking in a fallen world when we do not take our problems to the Lord.  The Bible clearly tells us in I Thessalonians 5:17:  "Pray without ceasing."  A simple command to believers.  We do not need to use the same words over and over.  God hears us the first time we call in the name of Jesus.  Actually, He knows what we need before we ask.  Yet, He desires to hear from us what it is that our heart needs.

     We know that prayer is important because Jesus took the time to teach the disciples how to pray.  He also went off and prayed by Himself to the Father as an example of how to live in communion with our God.  Shouldn't we do the same?

     Further, we know that Christ found strength through prayer as demonstrated when He prayed for us  (John 17).  Then, in the Garden, (Matthew 26:36-44) our Lord went and prayed three times to the Father that the cup might be taken away, but He was ever obedient to do the Father's will.  He implored His disciples to pray as well that they might not fall into temptation.  However, like many of us, they succumbed to sleep.  If this is not an important exercise, the Lord would not have emphasized it.

     Finally, the Apostle James (the half brother of our Lord), tells us in James 5:16b:   " The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working."  He tells us in the same chapter to pray for one another for healing.  We can bring all our requests before the Lord and leave them with Him.  We need not go on carrying burdens or heartaches alone.  God will hear us when we call to Him.  I can think of no greater privilege we can have than being able to talk with our God.

       Seeing my neighbor the other day was a blessing and a reminder for me that we have great power in prayer.  After all, it is the one wireless connection we have that will never fail!  May we not neglect our time with God!!  He will do what we cannot.  Selah!