Rising Above Fear

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

Isaiah 41:13

We just got back from a family trip to the beach. The first day we arrived, we hurried to change into swimsuits and dashed for the beach.  Within minutes, we were all in the water: all except one.
Our youngest granddaughter, who is timid in nature, was afraid of the waves.  She didn't know what might happen to her if she went in the water. We didn't push, but let her skip around on the edge of the waves, watching the other kids frolicking in the water.  Finally, she decided to try getting in, but only if Daddy held her hand.

Within a few minutes, she was jumping and splashing in the water along with the others. Her father's big, strong hand had helped her to find the courage to overcome her fear.  By the end of the week, she was laughing at the idea that she had ever been afraid of the water.

Did you know that the phrase "fear not" is found 62 times in the Bible? It's not surprising that God spent so much time on this topic.  Most Christian women will admit that they struggle with fear on a regular basis. However, for many of us, fear can take root in our hearts and grow; throwing a giant shadow across our lives until it almost paralyzes us.

What we sometimes forget is that fear is not something that Satan throws at us; it is something that we create from our own imaginations.  After all, if you think about it you will realize that we aren't fearful about what is actually happening, we are afraid of what might happen in the future. For example, you may hear on the news that unemployment is again on the rise and that makes you fearful.  However, what you are fearing is not the unemployment rate but the possibility that you or your husband might lose your job.  It isn't the present problem that produces fear, but the potential for future suffering.

God doesn't want us to live in fear because fear robs us of our joy.  This week, I learned an important lesson from my granddaughter.  We don't know what might happen to us when we walk out that front door.  The world is a scary place and bad things do happen.  However, I can choose to focus on what is going on in my life today, knowing that God is right there, holding my hand; or I can dwell on the bad things that could happen to me or my loved ones someday, and live in fear.  Ultimately, like any sin, it is a choice that I make every day.

Today, I choose to take God's hand.

The Hardships of Sowing

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.  He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

Psalm 126: 5-6

 

Peter and Paul are undoubtedly the greatest of evangelists of all time.  They were among the first to sow the "precious seed" of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The concept of sowing and reaping is a basic doctrine of the Christian faith.  We all know that we reap what we sow and we are all familiar with the parable of the sower and the seed. We may even acknowledge (much to our discomfort) that as a Christian it is our duty to be out there in the world sowing seeds.

However, we often overlook the passage from Psalm 126.  Notice that it doesn't say that we are sowing tears, but that tears are shed as we sow.  David is telling us that sowing is a painful process. That is evident in the lives of Peter and Paul.  Throughout their lifetimes, they faithfully sowed the Gospel among the lost.  In return for their efforts, they were beaten, shipwrecked, imprisoned, and martyred.

Think of our missionaries, who leave family and friends to go and spread the Gospel to the ends of the earth.   At the very least, they spend their lives in an alien culture, surrounded by people who look, talk, and think differently from them. Often they suffer physical abuse, persecution, and even death at the hands of the very same people that they came to help.

The rest of us go on with our lives, hardly thinking about the spiritual condition of those around us.  We shy away from sharing the Gospel with a co-worker or neighbor because they might think less of us. Or, even worse, we make the excuse that we don't feel comfortable sharing the Gospel with others. 

I seriously doubt that Paul felt "comfortable" being stoned, scourged, and imprisoned for sharing his faith, but it did not stop him.  It is our natural tendency to want to stay in our "comfort zone," but we need to realize this: No Christian has ever accomplished anything of significance for the Kingdom of Heaven while remaining in their comfort zone.

Yes, witnessing may stretch you beyond what you thought you could ever do and cause you to suffer more than you would have wanted; but don't forget the second part of the passage.  God promises that our tears will turn to joy and one day we will have the pleasure of entering into eternal life in heaven along with the "sheaves" that we helped to bring to Christ.