"Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever. They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord. Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes." (Psalm 112:6-8 NIV)
I was watching "Batman Begins" last night and wondering what it is that I really fear. I can think of some major fears from years past. But, to tell you the truth, the older I get and the closer to the LORD that I get, those things that make me anxious and even hint at fear are less and less.
Yesterday, I wrote about fearing the LORD. Today, I'm thinking about how in reality "perfect love does cast out all fear." (1 John 4:18) By trusting in the LORD, our fears are cast aside.
For one thing, trusting God and following in the way of the LORD, keeps us from doing some of those foolish things that will endanger our lives and futures. We know that trusting Him means trusting that His will is for our good, so we strive do His will. It's when we go purposely go off the path that Jesus sets before us that we begin to fear because we know the paths that we create for ourselves lead to destruction and not life.
Some of the things we fear are really just a waste of time. It's like the devil tricking us, leading us away from focusing on our journey with Christ. Fear just kind of sucks the joy right out of life. Think about it... The last time you were anxious about something were you focusing on serving God or how to save your own skin? Were you joyful, were you at peace? Or did you feel like throwing up? Don't be letting the evil of the world steal your joy by filling you with fear. Trust in the LORD, follow Him and Him alone, for His will for you is good. He is the way and the truth and the life. (John 14:6)
When I was a small child, I use to play in the woods a lot and often alone. I was not afraid and there were a whole lot more wild animals around than there are now. I was not taught to be afraid. But, as I became an adult, I became a bit more anxious about walking in the woods alone. Maybe rightly so, maybe not. The problem was, I really enjoy walking in the woods. I like hiking and very few others that I know like it as much as I do, so my opportunities for hiking were limited. I began taking one of the little Toy Fox Terriors, that we were raising, with me - not for protection - because they certainly could not protect me. (Well, maybe Pudgy could - he was bit aggressive) But, I knew from what my parents had taught me when I was young that the noise they and I made together as we walked through the woods would scare any animals off. The animals, you see, fear us. Over the years, I overcame my fear of hiking alone in the woods (yes, without a gun) so I can once again enjoy the beauty and peace of this part of God's creation.
I do not believe that we are born with fears. We are taught to fear. We create fear in our hearts when the LORD is not residing there.
Trust in the LORD. Those who are righteous in Christ have no need to fear. He is with you always. He abides in you and you in He.
God's Peace - Pr. J
P.S. Sorry so late this morning - took some time to sort through old photos... I'm not real good at filing them.
Yesterday, I wrote about fearing the LORD. Today, I'm thinking about how in reality "perfect love does cast out all fear." (1 John 4:18) By trusting in the LORD, our fears are cast aside.
For one thing, trusting God and following in the way of the LORD, keeps us from doing some of those foolish things that will endanger our lives and futures. We know that trusting Him means trusting that His will is for our good, so we strive do His will. It's when we go purposely go off the path that Jesus sets before us that we begin to fear because we know the paths that we create for ourselves lead to destruction and not life.
Some of the things we fear are really just a waste of time. It's like the devil tricking us, leading us away from focusing on our journey with Christ. Fear just kind of sucks the joy right out of life. Think about it... The last time you were anxious about something were you focusing on serving God or how to save your own skin? Were you joyful, were you at peace? Or did you feel like throwing up? Don't be letting the evil of the world steal your joy by filling you with fear. Trust in the LORD, follow Him and Him alone, for His will for you is good. He is the way and the truth and the life. (John 14:6)
When I was a small child, I use to play in the woods a lot and often alone. I was not afraid and there were a whole lot more wild animals around than there are now. I was not taught to be afraid. But, as I became an adult, I became a bit more anxious about walking in the woods alone. Maybe rightly so, maybe not. The problem was, I really enjoy walking in the woods. I like hiking and very few others that I know like it as much as I do, so my opportunities for hiking were limited. I began taking one of the little Toy Fox Terriors, that we were raising, with me - not for protection - because they certainly could not protect me. (Well, maybe Pudgy could - he was bit aggressive) But, I knew from what my parents had taught me when I was young that the noise they and I made together as we walked through the woods would scare any animals off. The animals, you see, fear us. Over the years, I overcame my fear of hiking alone in the woods (yes, without a gun) so I can once again enjoy the beauty and peace of this part of God's creation.
I do not believe that we are born with fears. We are taught to fear. We create fear in our hearts when the LORD is not residing there.
Trust in the LORD. Those who are righteous in Christ have no need to fear. He is with you always. He abides in you and you in He.
God's Peace - Pr. J
P.S. Sorry so late this morning - took some time to sort through old photos... I'm not real good at filing them.
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