Living in a Day of Many Fears

[Keith]

I thought this was appropriate for today's times in dealing with fears we face today. Henry Blackaby is great!

Living in a Day of Many Fears

by Henry T. Blackaby

In this day of a great many fears, God reaches deep within our hearts and our minds and says,

[Christ's Free Servant]

Keith,

Thank you for sharing that. I think fear is the thing that cripples us the most and keeps us from being who God created us to be, so it must one of Satan's most powerful tools.

I have been reading through the Psalms for my quiet times and David expresses his fears so well and yet nearly always follows his honesty concerning his fears with ultimate trust in God and knowledge of God's perfect Sovereignty.

God has given us all emotions and emotions are A-moral. They are neither moral nor immoral. It is not wrong to feel fear. It is what we do with the feelings that make the difference. God wants us to go against those feelings and act in faith even when we are trembling in our boots.

I read a secular book about five years ago called "Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway." It had its good points and its bad points, but the title alone says it without even having to read the book.

I have this new job and I admit that I feel fear, because I'm having to do things I've never done before. Also, there are circumstances with this job that are surfacing in me past fears that I have never completely conquered. My father was a very mean person. He was a bully. He was severely abusive. He was an ultra perfectionist and a micromanager and if you didn't do it perfectly the way he wanted it done the moment he wanted it done, then WHAP!

Needless to say, I have always avoided jobs where time pressures were a regular part of the job or where the boss was tense and uptight or a micromanager or where I had to do multiple tasks all at once in a very fast period of time - customer service at its best. Well, I landed this kind of job. The boss assured me they were laid back and easy going, but he lied. He's not. He is the kind who wants it done his way NOW! Luckily, I don't see him that often and I work for his fiance instead. When he is there it immediately becomes tense.

Everything within my being wishes I could quit or they would fire me, but the Lord has been assuring me that his grace is sufficient and this is just another one of those hurdles I have to face and another fear that I must conquer in his strength. My quiet time this morning was about overcoming fear and someone sent me a devotional about overcoming fear and then you put this devotional here about overcoming fear and the songs on the radio were songs of God's provision and grace and help and so I'm getting the message. God wants me to conquer this fear. He does not want me to fear man. I still feel the fear, but I'm doing it anyway!

[Catsmeow]

Some fears are very real and very normal, like the mind-numbing fear I had when my husband fell ill and I had to call paramedics.

Or the fear we had enduring three horendous hurricanes last year.

Fear is something we cannot dismiss. The Lord understands that and equipped us with this healthy and normal emotion. Otherwise, we'd simply stand around when a lion or bear approached, instead of running away.

It's not that "fear" is bad, wrong or sinful....but that we should fear no evil itself.

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me...."

[gypc]

I think that there are 3 main types of fear.

The fear of God

The fear of things like if I touch the burner after I turn it on, I'll get burned.

And the fear that comes from what Keith is saying............that fear when we hang on to our own cares.

How do we release the 3rd fear? I think it starts by simply understanding that we have been bought by the Blood of Jesus. We belong to God......... he's our Father. When he tell us to cast our cares on him, it's not a suggestion. He holds the universe together.....wow........he is able to hold my little life together.

We no longer belong to ourselves...................so if what happens to me is God's business, I become free of what happens to me. Awesome!

Good thread

[Liss]

Psalm 55:22

Cast your burden on the LORD,And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.

Isaiah 38:17

Indeed it was for my own peace That I had great bitterness; But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back

1 John 4:18

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

Matthew 11,

28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

[yomotalking]

Bible says "True love casts out fear."

[Catsmeow]

I How do you respond in painful or fearful moments? When you know that God has assured you of His presence, do you worry anyway? Do you panic or turn instinctively to Him

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Uh, well...I freak out. Yep...it's true. When my kitty wanders off, I do freak out.

Then, I run to my prayer room and pray (real hard)... I pray, I beg and sometimes, I cry.

I have the fault of being a "worry wart".

BUT, I take my worry to the Father and remind Him of His promise, "Cast all your cares upon Him because He cares for you."

[Catsmeow]

Fear is not always a bad thing. For example, King Jehosaphat was fearful when he saw huge armies marching toward his relatively defenseless kingdom...

He sought the Lord, commanded the inhabitants of his kingdom to fast and pray for 3 days.

Finally, the prophet told him to march the CHOIR up front and center (instead of armed soldiers) and trust in the Lord's might.

As always, God came through and the enemy armies were all dead when Jehosephat crossed over the mountain and looked down in valley upon his enemies.

DEAD!!! All of them. Deceased, expired...and DEAD! Yep!

It's not that fear is wrong or bad....but it's what we do with our fear when it comes.

[yomotalking]

Fear is not always a bad thing. For example, King Jehosaphat was fearful when he saw huge armies marching toward his relatively defenseless kingdom...

He sought the Lord, commanded the inhabitants of his kingdom to fast and pray for 3 days.

Finally, the prophet told him to march the CHOIR up front and center (instead of armed soldiers) and trust in the Lord's might.

As always, God came through and the enemy armies were all dead when Jehosephat crossed over the mountain and looked down in valley upon his enemies.

DEAD!!! All of them. Deceased, expired...and DEAD! Yep!

It's not that fear is wrong or bad....but it's what we do with our fear when it comes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

AMEN!!!!!

[Snow4JC]

Re: Living in a Day of Many Fears

I think that the word fear is a way of controlling people.

Once you are brainwashed into thinking that if you do this or that you will suffer from what you do, You don't do it. Maybe you witness someone raping another person. You could call the police however you decide not too because you Fear for your life.

It's a way of stopping people from doing good things for others.

It's a method being used today by our government. The Bible does say,"Fear No EVIL!"

Snow4JC