Fear Not!
I have often found myself submerged in an intense feeling of fear. I believe many of us have been acquainted with such a feeling since childhood. Anyone can have fear. Some fears, however, are irrational such as: arachnophobia (the fear of spiders) or the fear of tunnels and bridges, etc. I personally think the best way to get rid of these fears is by facing them.
There are, however, two categories in which one can label fear as mentioned in the Bible. The first one is defined as a “good” fear that is to be felt and developed more and more. The other is a fear that we must conquer.
The ‘good’ fear is called the “fear of God”, which does not mean we must be afraid of Him, because upon accepting the sacrifice of Christ, believing in His resurrection and choosing to obey Him, we become His friend (in Luke 12:4 and John 15:14-15). Obviously you cannot be scared of your true friend. But what this means is to have a reverential fear -- like holding someone in high regard with awe and veneration. This attitude will naturally manifest in us as we realise how grand, Holy, perfect and magnificent God is. It also comes about once we understand that we are not worthy enough on our own to be in the King’s presence, and that because of our sinful lives and our human nature that contradicts God’s order, we are supposed to be separated from the Creator. It has to do with the deep respect that is due to the King for the power and wrath that belongs to Him. It is the complete revelation of the character and nature of God that opens our eyes to just how worthy He is to be revered. This fear can also be linked to the fact you desire to obey God as well as a desire discern His will.
The second type of fear is the fear of life's circumstances and things of this world. The Cambridge Dictionary defines this as: “an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat.” This is the type of fear where one would be afraid of bridges and of intimidating situations.
For example, Jacob ran away from his brother Esau, fearing for his life, after having stolen his birthright and blessings that his father gave him on his deathbed (found in Genesis 25:29-34 and 26:34-27/44). When he left Laban to return to his father’s lands as God instructed him to do, he sent messengers to Esau in order to “find favour in [his] eyes” (Genesis 32:5). They came back to inform him Esau would attend his meeting, bringing with him 400 men. Once again, Jacob becomes afraid, but this time he organises a convoy to “appease him” before meeting up with his brother (in Genesis 32:7-21). Jacob was scared that anything could happen to him, which is understandable based upon the circumstance in which he abandoned his brother. However, God had promised him that He would always remain with him (in Genesis 31:3). What I would like to say is, if you you are obeying God and are following his word (the Bible), you ought not to be frightened by circumstances. As a matter of fact, Isaiah 41:10 says:
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (NIV)
At the end of 2017, I was facing many conflicts, which I will later go into detail another time (I hope one day I will have the time to share with you my story 😉). I was feeling anxious about the university program I was in (I guess it is the moment to tell you lol), because my studies were not working out the way I had hoped. Even though I knew where God wanted me to be, I had the impression that my choices went against His. For multiple reasons, I needed money and more than 24 hours in a day to complete multiple tasks. All the stress I was experiencing in this period lead to some health repercussions such as completely tensed up muscles in which there was nothing to help solve the issue. A few days after Christmas, I met up with a friend. That is when I explained to her my worries and doubts on the school situation. Shortly after, she helped me calm down. She told me these few words that I can never forget until this day: “Do not fear.” She then added that God tells us to not worry 365 times throughout the whole Bible. And, the way she emphasized it was no coincidence. If you trust and adhere to God and if you have already given your life to Him, you must not be troubled in Spirit (worrisome).
Jesus is the Prince of peace (in Isaiah 9:6), so put all your troubles and worries into God’s hands. Believe that He will take care of your problems, no matter how scary they may seem.
To finish off the story, I went back home that evening, and I asked God to carry all of my burdens and to take my cares, because He did not want (and never wants) me to be fearful nor worrisome. That is why I believe in Him, because I can put my trust in Him. The next day, I woke up with a sound mind and without anymore muscle pains. As of now, the entire school issue has been resolved. I now have more free-time and I no longer spend my money unwisely, so I no longer find myself in lack.
This is my advice for you and definitely one of the best counsel I could ever share with you (which is normal, because it is inspired by the Bible): if you believe in God, do not worry no matter what situation you’re experiencing. Last week’s article finished off with: “God loves YOU as if you were the only human being on Earth”, and that is the reason why you should not fear! I can never repeat this enough: life may not always be easy, but with God as your guide and support, it will have purpose.
May God bless you,
Do 😊
P.S.: I was inspired by https://www.gotquestions.org/bible-fear.html for the definition of the fears. Check out any other information on this subject on the website.