Fear

Fear is one of the greatest obstacles we have to overcome. Everyone deals with it in a different way. Some panic and run around in circles, accomplishing nothing. Others simply shut down, too frightened to do anything.

Still others implode into themselves in the face of fear, and again, they accomplish nothing. The enemy uses fear to knock Christians out of the spiritual battle that we are in.

Where did fear come from? In Genesis, after they had sinned and made coverings for themselves, Adam and Eve, “heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day and the hid themselves for they were afraid.”ß) What caused fear? Sin caused it.

Sinning against God will cause a believer to be afraid. Sin leads to fear just like lightening leads to thunder. Where there is one, the other is certain to follow.

Fear can also lead us to sin. Father Abraham went to Egypt with his beautiful wife, Sara. Because he feared that they would kill him to take Sara, Abraham lied and said that she was his sister. Pharaoh indeed took Sara to be a part of his harem, but the Lord warned him in a dream that she was Abraham’s wife, and that if Pharaoh defiled her, bad things would happen.

Fear stops some people in their tracks. It leads to anxiety attacks, nervous disorders, medical problems and even death. Yes, you really can be scared to death. But, there is help available.

2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Fear does not come from God, but from our enemy, the devil. It is one of his most effective tools, when we succumb to it, because it keeps us from doing the work of the Kingdom.

“I’m afraid to talk to me neighbor about the Lord. I can’t ask them to church! What would they think?”

Fear of rejection, fear of being judged and fear of being ridiculed for our faith: these are some of the fears the enemy uses to keep us from sharing the good news. These fears do not come from God.

What God gives us is power, love and a sound mind. When a Christian shares their personal testimony of how they came to know the Lord as their Savior, many people will listen. You don’t have to be a seminary graduate to have a story to tell. Just tell it! Your story may be the very one that the Lord will use to bring another soul into the Kingdom, and it could be that if you don’t share your faith, that person may never enter the Kingdom of God.

Do not let fear be your master – there is too much riding on it. Share your story. Win the lost. Glorify the Lord. With his help, you can do it.

Blessings on you all,

Dr. Curtiss P. Davis

First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)