Does fear threaten your faith?

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV.

It seems we cannot get away from it. The television newscasts are overrun with it, Facebook screams about it all day long, the images and headlines play over and over in our heads until we cannot possibly erase them. So much fear.

Wildfires.

COVID-19.

Hurricanes.

Coronavirus.

Floods.

SARS-CoV-2.

Earthquakes. 

Covid pneumonia.

Threats of nuclear war.

And the list goes on…

Fear and Faith.

Can we have both at the same time? King David did. He tells us in Psalm 56: 3, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”

David was hunted down, literally, by King Saul who was so jealous of David that he thought the only way to get rid of this nemesis was to kill him.

We can assume David was afraid most every day while he was on the run and that is the cool thing about this verse. He is admitting he is afraid but when he is, when he is overcome with that emotion that we are born with, he knows what to do.  Even though he might be scared, he doesn’t let it paralyze him and turn him into a shivering coward. When he is afraid? He trusts in the One who does away with fear.

In the last few months, fear has taken hold of many people, those that know God and those that do not. But our God doesn’t want us to be consumed with fear and trembling. If you are filled with His spirit, you have the power to overcome that fear!

If we let that anxiety consume us, then we would never overcome. This is not the will of God. We must TRUST in the One who orchestrates our lives and give Him these fears every single day.

• Purpose in your heart when you get out of bed in the morning to tell the Lord that you will not give in to fear today or give place to the enemy!
• Don’t even let him have a foothold into your mind but fight that fear and anxiety by putting your trust in God.
• Speak His Word out loud and claim His promises as your own.
• Bind the spirit of fear in Jesus’ name and loose the peace of God in its place. It works!
• Put on the whole armor of God!

Now, what about those that trusted in God but have perished in the storms, fires, earthquakes, wars, etc.? They may have gotten up one morning and placed their trust in God for the day and before it was over they had not survived. Did He not hear their prayer that morning? Why did He not protect them from evil or disaster?

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Romans 8:18 ESV.

What the enemy meant for evil…God will use for His glory!

Jesus was there, He was with them, He did not leave them! You can’t have a testimony without a test; use it for His glory!

Even though we live in the HERE and NOW it really isn’t all about that, is it? It is about our future, our eternity, where our soul will reside when all is said and done. The Bible says we WILL be persecuted for His namesake. It also says He will never leave us or forsake us but that doesn’t mean we won’t face trials, temptations or even have our very lives threatened…or taken.

We are not exempt from suffering; we live in a fallen world. But our hope is not in this life or in this world! It is in what is to come, HE is our hope!

“For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.” 2 Corinthians 4:17 ESV.

One day, His Word promises that Jesus will come back and take His people out of here. And we are promised 1,000 years of peace! We lean on that promise as we see the days grow darker and darker.

Until then? We go on sharing the Gospel, living each day to the fullest and being Salt and Light in a dark and evil world.

No matter what comes upon us, we do not have to let FEAR overtake us. We have hope beyond this life and a promise that He is with us to the very end, whenever that might be.

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10.

What are you afraid of today? Would you take a moment to ask God to deliver you from fear and replace it with His peace that passes all understanding? Then, believe what you have asked Him for and walk as a child of the King and don’t let fear threaten your faith!

“Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name…” 1 Peter 4:19 ESV.