David and Goliath…Round Two

My apologies that it’s been so long since the last post, but alas…things have been busy!
It worked out well, though, because it’s given me time to ponder a little on this next post!
Some things I’d like to share with you about fear…

First of all, we all know that fear is the exact opposite of faith, don’t we? If we’re afraid,
then we’re not trusting God to take care of us the way we want to be taken care of. We
often forget that there is no fear in love…

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with
punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:18)

Our love may not be perfect, but God’s is. And He dwells in us, so the capability for
that perfect love is within us…if we’ll just let it out!    That’s the only way we can really
experience the peace that passes all understanding (Phil. 4:7) which guards our hearts
and minds in Jesus!

If we know the truth, we have no fear. We have that peace. But if we believe the lies
and allow them to become our truth…we have fear. And fear can be a dangerous thing.
The thing is, in order to know the truth, we have to spend a little time learning. Not from
a preacher that stands behind the pulpit, or from some guy that writes a post in a blog
now and then…but from God. We have to open the Book from time to time! We have
to spend a little time seeking and listening. We have to spend a little time with Him…

There’s something you need to understand about fear, folks. It can be very, very
dangerous for the one who carries it around. We talked a little in the last post about
the media, and the role they play in keeping fear stirred up, circulating and alive. Now
I’ll share a little insight with you….

For example: Why does it seem like cancer is so wide-spread? Because it is! But
WHY is it? Used to be a time when you seldom heard of it. Rare was the person
who survived it, but rare was the person that had it, too. Kinda like divorce. There
was a time that few were divorced…but look around NOW! How come?

I believe a large part of it is the media, working hand in hand with our own fears and
beliefs. The media picked up on cancer. They picked up on divorce. What tragedies!
They exposed us to the horrors…they picked up stories and ran with em. Ran all over
us! They ran over us again and again, until….we became afraid. We became afraid of
cancer…afraid of divorce. We feared them. And because we feared them, they became
a part of our lives. Now you can hardly meet anyone that hasn’t dealt with one or the
other in some way. (Bear with me a second here…)

The world fuels the fires of fear. Our minds allow thoughts of fear. And our realities
become the things we’re so afraid of….

Check this out, folks. This is a very important link to what I’m trying to say. I hope
it’ll go a long way in helping you understand what I’m talking about. Have you ever
taken the time to read through the book of Job? If you haven’t, maybe you’ve at least
heard about the calamaties that overtook him. And even if you have read it, you may
have overlooked this one single, but very important phrase:

“What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me.” (Job 3:25)

Read that again, will ya? “What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has
happened to me.”  Read it one more time…and then again. Until you start to understand
something….that what you fear could very easily come upon you…what you dread
can easily happen to you…because fear allows faith to be penetrated by lies. And
when the lies make it through the faith, they can become your truth.

Take a look at your own circumstances. What have you been afraid of it the past?
Now, keep in mind, we’re not talking about concerns here, we’re talking about FEARS.
What terrified you? Has it become a part of your reality? What scares you now?
Remember this: Jesus is the truth (John 14:6). Flip through your Bible and see how
many times Jesus said, “Fear not!”

That wasn’t a comment or a request. It was a command! “FEAR NOT!” Coming
from the mouth of Truth, itself…

If Truth says to fear not, and there is no fear in perfect love, which is the only kind
of love Truth knows…then fear must be what? A lie..and if it’s a lie, it’s not real. It’s
not TRUTH…unless we allow it to be…

Be careful of what you fear…