FAITH, not Fear

 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." Matthew 6:34

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." II Timothy 1:7

I could not locate the quote, but I feel like I have heard someone else say this sentence that has dominated my thoughts this week: "Faith is the absence of fear." I think the danger of this ultimatum-like phrase is that it could lead to feeling defeated, to feeling like you are failing in your faith if you are ever afraid. I don't think God wants us, His redeemed children, to live in defeat. 

Rick Warren once said, "Fear is a self imposed prison that will keep you from becoming what God intends for your to be. You must move against it with the weapons of faith and love." If we allow ourselves to dwell in fear, I absolutely believe it becomes a self-constructed barrier between us and God. It can certainly slow down God's plans for our future - although I do not think it can derail it altogether. Friends, if God has a plan for you, He will keep pushing you towards it. It is our choice to either embrace His plan, seeking Him, His wisdom, and His Spirit for guidance; or we can run. It is when we run towards fear, or dwell in fear, that we can feel imprisoned by our feelings, thoughts, and emotions. We feel isolated, and alone...but the truth is that God is standing there, key in His hand, waiting for us to let Him lead us away from those fears.

I have long loved the above verse from Matthew; it's part of those Words in red that are comforting, direct quotes from our Savior. The verse in Second Timothy has been one of my very favorites, for as long as I can remember. I have probably quoted it and referenced it too many times to count, especially in the seventeen years since I started jotting down these thoughts God has placed on my heart. There are many references in the Bible that encourage us to not be afraid, or to have no fear...in fact, I have heard it said by many that there are 365 different places in the Bible where God tells us this! {One for every day of the year!!} I believe what is extra endearing to me about Timothy's words here, is that they are accompanied by the reminder of the good things God gives us instead of (and to battle against) fear! Power, love, and a sound mind are strong gifts to have in our spiritual arsenal! 

I have been on a journey in 2023, to read the whole Bible, start to finish, in one year. A feat I have attempted multiple times in my life, but am finally on a path that feels like it will end in completion on December 31st. I have loved discovering new stories I was unfamiliar with, as well as rediscovering old favorites. I actually read the above verse from Joshua back in the middle of April, but it did not jump out at me at that time as much as it did today when it was the Verse of the Day in my app I use for reading the Bible on my phone. 

In fact, all week I have been trying to think of which verse I wanted to quote today. I knew I felt today's thoughts would be about fear because it's been on my heart all week long. Not as in I have been fearful, just that it seemed God was placing that on my heart to dive into. I have been trying to build the habit of starting each day with God. Praying before I get out of bed, and usually opening my Bible app to read the Verse of the Day and at least one devotional plan. That Verse of the Day comes to my lock screen as a push notification at 5 am each day. I am rarely awake at 5 am so it is the first thing I see when I look at my phone...

I knew the moment I read this verse from Joshua that it would become the verse at the top of today's post. The other verses popped in my head as I was copying the first one. These, and many others, are powerful reminders from God's precious Word that we do not need to live in fear, that fear is not something He gives us, therefore fear has no real power over us! In this sin-broken world, and in this age of technology where that brokenness is so prevalent every time we turn on a tv, or radio, or computer, even on our smartphones...it is so very important to learn these verses, keep them in our spiritual arsenal, quote them at the devil when he tries to breathe fear over us. Instead of dwelling in that fear, we will win the battle by keeping our faith, our focus, our efforts on the One who is in control of all things. Cling to Him, and His promises to us of deliverance, and of His peace. 

My prayer for your this week, and always, is that you will let your faith be bigger than your fears. Memorize your favorite verse about fear, and use that to strengthen your faith against your fears. I pray you will draw closer to God, relying on Him and His promises that He did not give us fear, rather He gives us everything we need to overcome our fears, with faith in Him. Be blessed and be the blessing my beloved brothers and sisters in Christ.