What is going on everyone!! So, this week, I wanted to dig into the topic of fear. In more detail, however, I want to dig into how to overcome fear. I do want to preface the fact that I do fully understand how paralyzing fear is. I deal with it myself every single day, but the more we focus on how big God is, the smaller and smaller our fears will become.
In Scripture, there are many examples of people who talk about fear. Two main people I want to highlight is David, from the Old Testament, and Peter, from the New Testament. David is named as a man after God’s own heart. Although he was an amazing man of faith, he dealt with fear in such a strong way. To make a long story short, he was hiding from King Saul because Saul was jealous of David. He literally was trying to kill him. In Psalms 27, David is praying, “The LORD is my light and my salvation–so why should I be afraid? The LORD is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?” This verse can resonate with us even today. I know for myself, I fear the future, who I will get to spend life with, and how I will be able to become more stable and independent. There are many other fears we deal with on a daily basis, such as failure and other deep down fears we have to push through. Although these fears are very very real, we do not have to be afraid or tremble because the Creator of the Universe is watching over us and protecting us.
In the second example, I want to highlight the perspective of Peter. I believe also that we can relate closely to Peter. In Matthew, it talks about how Jesus called out to Peter to walk on the water to Him. In our lives, Jesus is calling out to us to do what seems impossible, but with Him we can conquer the impossible (that is another message for another day). If you notice in Matthew 14:30, it says, “But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” This is so me. There are times where I see Jesus calling me closer to Him, but when circumstances around me become more visible, I falter. I think we can all relate to that. The amazing thing is that Jesus reached out and picked Peter up. It amazes me that Peter was able to do something miraculous, but as soon as he took his eyes off Jesus, he began to drown. That is so real for us in our lives because as soon as we take our focus off of Jesus, we will drown in sin and shame and guilt. God doesn’t want that for us at all, so I want to challenge us to gain sight of Him and to turn from the fears that the enemy tries to put in our midst.
I am a firm believer that God is powerful. He is able to lift us when we fall, and He is able to be a solid rock for us to stand on. As true as this is, we have to do our part in trusting His plan and strength for us. We can’t continually be so focused on our fears. When we focus more on our fears than on God’s promises, we rob God of what He can be for us. So I say this, that when we remind ourselves that God is greater than our fears, we can walk on the water towards Jesus. I challenge us all this week to really press in to Christ and to focus more on His faithfulness than our fears. Let us live a life of surrender in strength in Jesus name.
Love y’all,
Ryan W.
