Take courage! God knows you battle daily with fear. He promises you strength to slay your frightful monsters. In him is freedom.
When you or I say or think “What if?” we become a plaything in the paws of the worry monster. This enemy of your soul intends to smash your hopes and dreams like PlayDo and to keep you from becoming the godly woman of courage.
How do I know? God says so. Scripture teaches us truth and sometimes it ain’t pretty.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.”
Now don’t freak. The rest of John 10:10 trumpets a peaceful promise. Here’s Jesus talking:
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
This is abundant life, beautiful warriors. He is the WHO who blots out the “what if’s” that spell f-e-a-r.
The only fear that has any place in a Christian’s life is the fear of God. This godly fear — or reverent submission — draws you toward the Lord and keeps your heart dependent on him. Fear of God blesses you.
Whether you stuggle with “what if” my husband dumps me
or ‘what if” my teen crashes the car
or “what if” my health worsens,
or “what if” I can’t pay the bills this month,
or “what if” another panic attack clutches me by the throat,
know this: “Fear of God is the one fear the dispels all others.” (Jay E. Adams, The Christian Counselor’s New Testament)
How can you grow in the blessed fear of God? Here are three ideas to get you started.
1. Pray to God and ask him to deepen your fear of him. He’ll say “yes” to this prayer because it’s his will for you to fear him as you know him — not as a mean, abusive taskmaster (this isn’t a picture of the one true God) but as your gracious heavenly Father who cherishes you.
2. Memorize Scripture. When you know several, even dozens, of verses by heart, you can remind yourself of God’s promises when you fear jumps you. A few helpful Scriptures are Ephesians 6:10, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Deuteronomy 31:6, and Philippians 4:13. I’ve found that the best way to memorize is repeat a verse several times a day for a week. Add a second verse and review the first. Then add a third and review the first two, and so on.
3. Praise and thank God throughout the day. It’s sunny? Praise him. Raining? Say thank you. You hugged your kid. More praise. You made it to the grocery store and back home. Thank him. Praise and thanks to God are two more weapons to defeat ungodly fear and develop the blessed fear of God.
Heavenly Father, replace my ugly fear with the blessed fear of reverence of you. You are good. You have power. You made me and you know me. In Jesus I have the power and strength to conquer the enemy of fear. I praise you and thank you. Amen.
Question: What is a recurring fear for you? Please leave a comment. 🙂
You Are Courageous!
My greatest is that (because of fear) I’ll keep making excuses and regret that I didn’t do what the Lord asked me to do.
Wanda, did I ever send Paula Silva’s book to you? I saw two on my bookshelf and wondered, Did I forget? If so, send my your street address to Lucy@LucyAnnMoll.com.
Senior moment? Err.
Hi. I hope you don’t mind but I am a guy!. The what if monster, has been on me pretty hard. My wife has a small medical issue, I am not even sure it is an issue to be honest. But I have taken that swollen lyph node, and made it into a pit of fear. I have been this way my whole life. I operate with the “what if’s” and they are usually very negative thoughts.
ST
Hi Steve,
All are welcome here. 🙂 You can rid yourself of anxious, negative thoughts with God’s help. Read Romans 12:1-2 to get an idea of HOW to renew your mind. Ridding negative thoughts is more than a matter of reading a Bible verse, of course. May I suggest that you talk with your pastor or with a man you trust at your church? I’ll keep you and your wife in my prayers.