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fear

Savoring Your Season: Be Not Afraid

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Life is full of seasons other than spring, summer, fall and winter. Childhood, adolescence, and adulthood; single, dating, engaged and married. We have healthy and unhealthy seasons, ones of flourishing and of pruning, and every high and low in between. I’ve been one to say I’m in a season of waiting just as often as I say I’m in a season of going. Too often, we lose sight of the present season for looking too much on the seasons past or future. Let’s take some time this week to be honest about our seasons – mentally, spiritually, physically and emotionally – and learn to savor and soak in where we are now.

 

Be Not Afraid

You whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest corners, saying to you, “You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off”; fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:9-10

tuesdayWhen I tell people that I’m moving to Thailand, one of the first questions they ask is, “Are you scared?” The truth is, I’ve asked the same question of myself almost as often as others have. My life and my relationships used to be ruled by fear – the fear of rejection, the fear of getting hurt, the fear of failure. In the past few years, I’ve decided there’s another choice I can make.

The world teaches us to fear. Fear people, especially the ones who are different from you. Fear the ocean for the sharks. Fear the government, public education, money, the world – you can fill in the blank with any number of things when you turn the news on in the evening.

Too often we live out of our worst fears instead of our best hopes. We let fear become our motivator and our address, yet we are not called to be a people of fear. We are a people of faith, hope, and love. We are a people of Scripture that tells us “Do not fear” 365 times, Scripture that tells us in 2 Corinthians 3:17 “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” This includes freedom from our fears, our worries, and ourselves. When we reject fear and choose to stand firm in the freedom of Christ’s perfect love, our lives become more open, more generous, more loving and more patient.

Fear can rob us of passions and dreams given to us by God if we choose not to fight them. Every person I know that has struggled with specific fears has a calling on their lives that fear keeps them from fulfilling. Isn’t that all of us? My fear of rejection and being alone has had the potential to steal away the opportunities and distract me from the path that the Lord has laid out before me. When we listen to our fears over listening to our God, we risk missing something beautiful.

On earth, in our imperfect states, we will never completely remove fear from our lives, but we can choose to change our focus. We can choose to stop living from a place of fear and instead live out of a place of security in the power of Christ, whose perfect love casts out all fear. It won’t always be easy and it certainly won’t always be safe, but our lives are secured in the love of a Father who created the universe with a simple word.

Amy Carmichael was a missionary to India who once said, “If my attitude be one of fear, not faith, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” Be brave with your life and your faith – the God who created you and knows every hair on your head will never leave you. Your identity and your eternity are already secured in the God who conquered evil for you. What can man do to change that?

Chelsey

Questions: Why are you afraid?

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Whether talking with the disciples, speaking in a public forum, or defending Himself before His enemies, Jesus consistently asked questions.  In the four gospels, Jesus asked over 300 questions.

 

Why are you afraid?

And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”

Matthew 8:23-37

friday_57595743_SFear. It’s something I wish I could say that I rarely feel since becoming a believer.  But even though I professionally counsel many who struggle with fear and anxiety, I can’t deny my own battle with it as well.

I know that because we live in a fallen world, we will always feel a measure of fear. In fact, God designed our brains to detect danger and to feel fear in order to prompt us to take action. A portion of our brain is constantly scanning our environment to detect threats. If this automatic and reactive region of the brain decides that something poses a threat, then a signal is sent to get our mind and body ready for whatever may be looming in our midst. Adrenaline pumps, hearts race, hands sweat, and stomachs lurch. hands are sweating and our stomach feels awful. We can’t always prevent this rapid surge from happening; it is naturally associated with dangerous situations.

The most advanced and rational region of our brain, the cortex, has the opportunity to either fuel or override the fear. Our knowledge of who God is, our memories of Scripture and our past experiences all play an enormous role in how the cortex will handle what we are experiencing, both externally and internally.

If we choose to trust God for wisdom, discernment, direction and leading, even if our lives are truly in danger, we can still experience a powerful peace amidst the storm. If we look at the situation and refuse to place our trust in God’s providence, His love, and His guidance, we can quickly go into panic mode.

I think this is what Jesus detected in this scene on the water. The storm would have been viewed as a threat to anyone, simply based on the way that we are created. But, once they assessed the situation—yet refused to trust that Jesus, who was right there with them, was in control—they moved from instinctive fear to panicky fear. Instead of believing in Jesus’ power, the gravity of their situation led them to doubt both His position and His passion for them.

In a similar situation my response has everything to do with what I choose to focus on. Once my physical symptoms alert me to the fact that I am feeling fearful or anxious, if I don’t allow the steadfast character of God and the truths of Scripture to be my anchor, I will inevitably flounder like the disciples did that day. My interactions with Him will be characterized by frightful cries instead of faith-filled conversations that affirm I know who He is, what He is about, and what I can lean on in the midst of the storm.

God knows that we will feel fear at times. But, as soon as we become aware of what is happening, we must take time to answer the question as well. “Why are you afraid?” Will your mind believe or doubt the omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent God?

Jackie