If God doesn't want us to fear {what DOES He want us to have?}

The life of a Christian is not an easy life. Add to that being a wife, then being a mother, then also being a mother of school-aged children (no matter your educational choices), and the "easy" tally doesn't get any bigger.

Sometimes, it's not even just hard.

There are moments, days, and weeks where we could easily be gripped and overcome with fear.

It can be as simple as seeing all the opportunities for danger in the confines of a home.

It can be the crossing of a road, or the travelling in a car.

Circumstances can occur which bring fear to the front of our minds.  Difficult times when we face trials and difficulties, and fearing the day ahead, never mind the future, can have an almost crippling effect.

Child birth, breastfeeding, and rearing a small family - and an ever growing family - can make fear nudge at our thoughts.

The "what ifs?" of life can become a weight around our neck, and fear creeps in until it consumes us.

Recently, on his way through systematic teaching on II Timothy, my husband preached on the verse in chapter 1, that many would have heard before.

It really struck my heart, as a woman whose heart is inclined towards fear, in many circumstances. It holds so much truth, and so much depth of meaning.

It directs our minds, firstly, to something that God has not given us.

Fear.

When we fear, it doesn't come from God. We are to fear GOD, but we are NOT to fear our circumstances, and the situations we may, or may not, encounter in life.

God has NOT given us fear.

If it's not from Him, where IS it coming from?

It's that sneaky old serpent, the wily one, the devil.

HE wants us to be so gripped with fear, that our eyes are taken clean off what God HAS given us, which is what the second part of the verse tells us.

If the fear isn't from Him, what DOES he want us to have?

Power.

Love.

A sound mind.

Do you see?  Do you see what God has given?

A three-fold gift that encompasses body, heart and mind.

Power.  God has given us power.  This word, at its roots, is the word "dunamis". It's the root from which we get words like dynamite, and dynamic.

δύναμις
dunamis
doo'-nam-is
From G1410; force (literally or figuratively); specifically miraculous power (usually by implication a miracle itself): - ability, abundance, meaning, might (-ily, -y, -y deed), (worker of) miracle (-s), power, strength, violence, mighty (wonderful) work.

When we are feeling fearful, and weak, as the devil puts thoughts in our minds that are not of God, we need to claim that miraculous, supernatural power, that only comes from God. But, come from God it DOES! He has given it to us, and we need only use it. 

The word also implicates abundance. It's not a power that fails, or runs out, like earthly power sources. It's never-failing, and all sufficient, in our battle against the temptations of the flesh and the devil. We don't need to let it have the victory in our lives, because we have power. He will give us physical strength to do all we need to do in the situation He has us walking through. We have spiritual power to battle the wicked one, and to quench his fiery darts.

What else does God give us?

Love.

Love is one of the most powerful gifts that God has given us. A heart that is loving in the way which God has intended us to, has the power to conquer all fear.  If our hearts are filled up with loving God, and loving each other - if we are so consumed with love, gifted from God -  then we won't give a second thought to fear. 

ἀγάπη

agapē

ag-ah'-pay

From G25; love, that is, affection or benevolence; specifically (plural) a love feast: - (feast of) charity ([-ably]), dear, love.

I love the concept of a "love feast", here in Strongs! We need to have our hearts feasting upon love - we need to take our fill of it, and be satisfied with it. Relish it. Enjoy it. Savour it. 

When we then have our hearts filled up with love, we won't fear. 

How does the verse end?  With a concept that every woman struggles with. I'm convinced it's more of a female thing. 

Convinced.

A sound mind.

Our minds tend toward being over-thinkers. We over analyse, mull over, ponder and repeat, until we have ourselves in a tangled mess of thoughts that bring us to a place of crippling fear. Whether it's thinking about what OTHERS think of us, or thinking about what we may have said or done to offend others, or simply thinking about things that may never happen, we tie ourselves up in a web of thoughts that bring our minds to a place that is dark and fearful.

That is NOT having a sound mind. 

σωφρονισμός

sōphronismos

so-fron-is-mos'

From G4994; discipline, that is, self control: - sound mind.

A sound mind is a mind that is brought into subjection. A mind over which we exercise self control.  Not a mind where thoughts run away into endless mazes of unproductive fears and concerns. 

No.  

A mind that is focussed on the Saviour - the one who rules in our hearts and keeps us in perfect peace, if we only have the self control to keep our minds on Him. 

Oh, my sinful, straying heart. My heart that fears, when it simply doesn't need to. I don't need to even spare a thought for anything further than right now. And, right now, I can claim the power, love and sound mind of  Heavenly Father who cares for me more deeply than I will EVER know or understand.  

My Saviour. 

My Jesus. 

He speaks strength to my heart instead of weakness.

He speaks love into my heart instead of enmity, bitterness and hate.

He speaks sound thoughts and peace into my mind instead of unrest, clamour and doubt.

So, how do I practically battle this fear that threatens my peace?

I arm myself for battle!  

I fight with prayer, and I equip myself with His Word. If I keep His word to the front of my mind, I will be able to claim the promises - EVERY SINGLE ONE - that He has given in His word.

Search His Word daily, and keep a note of those promises, as He lays them upon your heart. Cherish them. Memorise them. Claim them.

And, cast out the fear and replace it with power, love and a mind that is fixed upon God.

How to have a cheerful week {believe God's promises}

My daily readings brought me to the end of Acts, today. I must confess, I can't read chapter 27 without having flashbacks to my hubby's days in Bible College.  As they had such a busy schedule, with classes and work (as in, work to earn money!), sermons were often preached more than once.  Needless to say, the fellow college students, and any wives accompanying them on deputation meetings, got to the stage where THEY could have preached the sermons themselves! On the whole, it was a good thing - especially when it was a particularly noteworthy sermon.

The verse that struck me today was one that was the basis for such a sermon.

It's a verse of encouragement - of hope - of courage - of CHEER!

"be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me."

Acts 27:25

This narrative in scripture is one of the most detailed there is, regarding a journey.  We have a blow by blow account (no pun intended....) of the stormy journey that Paul undertook, to get to Rome.  He was on his way to speak to Caesar, which was his right as a Roman citizen, after being arrested in Jerusalem.  The journey didn't go quite how the crew expected.  They tried to judge the best time to sail on their journey, and Paul even gave them warning about setting sail.  However, sail they did, and shipwreck ensued.  

Before they got to the point of shipwreck, we read the verse I have shared.  It follows a message from Paul, speaking of an angel of God who had come to Paul, telling him that he WOULD go to Rome, and the entire populous of the ship would be saved, alive.  

The ship was literally being torn apart, and they were chucking things over the side as fast as they possibly could, in attempts to save the ship from going down. A storm so bad, that the experienced crew had given up all hope that they would be saved.

But God, Himself came to Paul. Paul, when retelling the visit, says "Whose I am, and whom I serve" That is GOD.  No other! In the midst of the storm, He gave Him a promise.  They would be saved.

He had been given a promise.

He believed the promise.

He claimed the promise as his own.

He knew it was true.  It gave him peace, confidence, and CHEER, in the midst of a STORM!

Now, do you see?... God didn't say "I am going to the the storm away".

No.  That was not the promise.

The promise was that he would get THROUGH the storm.

In fact, the storm gathered momentum, and continued for days more, with more drama and attempts to lighten the ship. The sailors had got to the point of fasting, and Paul urged them to eat, assuring them they WOULD be saved! Not only that, but he continues to keep his eyes firmly upon honouring God, and being a faithful witness, by breaking bread with them, and giving thanks to God for the food, before them all. The next day, they find a creek to ground their ship in, and they all jump ship -   and, as God promised Paul, they all survived the ordeal!

As you head into a new week, there may be storms in your life.  There may be struggles and difficulties, that make you feel surrounded by darkness, like Paul had been in (Acts 27:20). Dark, hard days, can make us feel overwhelmed and weak.  But, you, too can have cheer.

We have the SAME God that Paul loved and served, as our Saviour.  He has given us many precious promises in His Word, and we need only to meet with Him to receive fresh joy, hope and cheer.

It may be a verses simply recalled from memory, in a time of need.  THAT is God giving you cheer.

It may be a verse you see on a wall, in a book, or on the Internet.  Perfect timing, and cheer in the storm.

The best source, of course, is the regular reading of His precious Word - His balm to our soul, His comfort to our heart, and His courage in our trials.  His voice - His Word - His promises - all ready to bring us cheer.

Some of my favourites are the "fear not" verses. These verses whisper "Peace, be still" to my soul.  They don't always cause the storm to cease, and like Paul, they may just need to be ridden out.  But peace in the heart brings calm to the situation.  Knowing that I don't have to fear the storm, brings great cheer.

"So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

Hebrews 13:6 

You see that?  We can even be BOLD in our trials. Not just get through them, but being BOLD! WOW!   Knowing that God is our helper takes away any fear  - especially the fear that can come because of other people, and the way they treat us.  

 "For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee."

Isaiah 41:13 

Such a precious verse.  Just as we mothers will hold our child's hand, to give them a sense of safety and security, so God "holds our hand", and takes our fear away.  WE can have cheer, because God is holding our hand, through the trials.

"But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. 

When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. 

Fear not: for I am with thee:"

Isaiah 43:1-2, 5

Precious, precious thought.

God.  The one who created us, and formed us in our mother's womb.  God, who has redeemed us from sin, and the punishment of death.  The one who has called us by name.  The one who OWNS us - who we belong to.

We, who are HIS.

We don't need to fear when we pass through waters.  He will be with us.

We don't need to fear, because He is with us through the deep rivers.  They won't overflow us.

We don't need to fear, because He is with us when we walk through the fire.  It won't burn us.

"Don't be afraid - I am with you"

My sweet friends, you can have cheer today! God has promised us SO much, in His Word.  His promises are faithful and true.  They are dependable.  We can place our hope and trust in God.  He WILL fulfil His promises.

 It doesn't matter what storms you are going through -  be of good cheer - God keeps His promises.