Leading up to Mother’s Day, this week’s devos were written by my best friend and wife, Grace, and our oldest daughter, Ashley, as part of their new book ‘Fearlessly Feminine’. Get your copy for a gift of any amount during the month of May by clicking here.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.” – Proverbs 9:10
We ALL have fears, some small, some big, but we can learn how to defeat them and not let them defeat us. “Fear not,” or some form of it, is the most common command in the Bible, appearing over 300 times! Easy to say but not always easy to do in the moment of anxiety. When we understand that beside those commands is “God is near,” “God is at hand,” or “the Lord is with you,” we can find our Source of comfort, peace, and wisdom. He is the reason we don’t need to get stuck in our fears!
This leads us to the discussion about healthy vs unhealthy fear. If we are told not to fear but we are to fear the Lord, then what’s the difference? Fear of the Lord is not being scared of God or wanting to run away from Him, rather it is having so much respect, honor, and awe toward God that you want to get to know Him more to learn from Him. God is perfect, we are not, so there is a reverence that comes from knowing that our Heavenly Father loves us and has a plan for each of our lives…that’s incredible!
In contrast, fear of anything else is the Enemy trying to convince us of the future without God in it. In 2 Tim. 1:7, he tells us that “God had not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” Fear can be a warning sign of danger, which is helpful, but if we let it consume us or cause us to panic or live an anxious life, it is not rooted in fear of the Lord. Fear asks “What if?” What if I fail, what if I lose, what if I get hurt? Fear of the Lord understands that God knows the future, loves us as a perfect Father, and asks “Please help me Lord, I trust you.”
Remember how Eve didn’t fear the Lord and gave into the Enemy’s temptations? We still deal with the consequences today. She was in a perfect environment with access to God but chose not to turn to Him. On the other hand, Mary, Jesus’ mother, is an example to us of a teenage mother who had every reason to fear but chose not to.
Let’s look at the difference between what Eve and Mary feared below.
OUR FIRST MOTHER EVE
– Feared missing out on something and doubted God’s design/plan
– Feared being dependent, so acted on her own interests
– Considered how she might be more like God, outside of His protection
– Feared after sinning, so she hid from God
– Actions brought death
– Gave way for a curse
JESUS’ MOTHER MARY
– Feared the Lord and acted in faith
– Feared and trusted the Lord, so forfeited her own plans for His
– Feared the Lord, so she considered how she could serve God
– Feared the Lord, so she worshiped God
– Actions brought peace and salvation
– Opened a pathway to blessing
We all experience fear, and we all get to choose what to do with it. We are responsible for our response to fear – we can stay in it or allow God to show us how to defeat it. When you first start feeling fear, stop to pray, resist it, and ask the Lord to walk you to peace with Him. Repeat this sequence over and over. You know you’ve connected with the Holy Spirit to fearlessly fight the fear when your mind isn’t spinning anymore and you are driven by peace. Will it still pop up here and there? Yes, but you now live with hope that it won’t overtake you like it did in the past.
What have you been fearful of lately? Take some time to pray and confess your fear to God and ask Him to replace it with faith.
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