Fear

 

 

We are all well acquainted with the emotion that bears a choke hold.  It's ruthless.  It's torment.  It's an enemy to faith, a thief that robs you of life - imprisons you to a false reality. 

Anxiety, depression, doubt, worry, hurt, anger, sadness, low self esteem, unworthiness.  It comes disguised underneath many different emotions, but it all comes down to one thing:

 

FEAR.

 

The paralysis for some is the dread of what could happen years down the road, anxiety associated with an unpredictable economy, and for many it is the torment of what today, the next hour, the next minute will bring. 

"...fear has torment." 1 John 4:18a

Fear is not only an emotion, but a spiritual force. It is very similar to faith in that both have an unshakable belief in an unseen future. Fear trusts circumstances, natural predictions, the enemy's lies, and self.  Faith trusts God and what His Word says.  Fear is negative faith. 

 

Fear is an enemy of God.  It in essence rips Him of His lordship in our lives. We become self focused and not God focused.  We put our trust in the wisdom of man rather than in the power of God (1 Cor. 2:5).  We no longer see Him for Who He is and who He desires to be in our lives...  He solely becomes a gateway to Heaven, but in our day to day living He is diminished to a dusty figure placed on a shelf.   

God is love, and the Bible says that Perfect Love casts out fear.  God is THAT perfect love. 

 

"There is no fear in love (dread does not exist), but perfect love turns fears out of doors and expels every trace of terror! For fear brings with it the thought of punishment.  He who is afraid has not fully experienced His perfect love." 1 John 4:18

Father, we want to know Your love... Your love is our freedom.  Your love removes shackles. Your love delivers us from all fear.  You are not what our circumstances look like. You are not what the latest trends define You as.  We commit to growing in the knowledge of who You truly are as defined in Your Word, and through that knowledge - growing in intimacy with You... We know that in experiencing that intimate love - fear has no more room in our lives. Thank You for Your love and the hope and peace it brings.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8TkUMJtK5k

 

"I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears." Psalm 34:4

Kindness

Every person is fighting a battle of some sort whether it is current issues they are facing or those pesky learned behaviors we all have that can make us pretty darn ugly at times.  That is why it is important to lay aside your natural response to take offense, and love the "unlovely."

We haven't been called to give people what they deserve. God has commanded us to treat others as we wish to be treated. We are also shown in Scripture that whatever it is we do to another (negative or positive) we are doing to Jesus Himself. And YES, this includes our spouses and our children :)  

So before you lash out and choose harshness over kindness, pause and picture Jesus standing before you. All hurt inflicted on another is bringing pain to the very heart of God.

 "Rudeness, yelling, anger, and swearing are a weak man’s imitation of strength." (Author Unknown) 

 

I will venture out to re-word "weak man" to not having matured in our ability to process and communicate.  We need to do this if we want to have healthy relationships.  Through clinging to the Father and allowing the Holy Spirit to work, we can respond and speak in such a way that is honoring to others and to God.

Let's be kind to one another. Kindness makes us more attractive :)

 

(Ephesians 4:31-32, Matthew 7:12, Luke 10:27, Proverbs 20:3, Proverbs 29:20, James 1:19, Matthew 25:45)

 

Repentance

Oftentimes, we are so driven to a life of perfection and self willpower that our "repentance"  to God becomes a method.  It becomes about us; OUR feeling "a clean slate," OUR feeling "right," OUR success driven thinking to personally have victory over sin.  In doing so, we miss the real point of repentance:  An opportunity to connect with the very One whose heart we grieved.   A time to reflect on Who enables us to overcome.   A turning of direction.   A moment of embrace.   A beautiful occasion to hear, “You and I are okay.”

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYQ5yXCc_CA