Do you guys know what the most frequent command of the Bible is? The answer might surprise you: "Do not fear." That is what we are told more often than any other command in God's Word, so obviously this is something God knew we would need to be reminded of. While I was reading one of these reminders recently, I realized that almost every time God tells us not to fear, He gives a reason why. "Fear not, FOR (fill in the blank)." There seems to be a few specific reasons that God gives us not to fear, and what's really awesome is that they acknowledge a lot of very common anxieties and worries that I've experienced or heard from others. Here are the things He showed me, and what I'm honestly preaching to myself as I grow in "fearing not."
"After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: 'Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.'” ~Genesis 15:1
“And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.'" ~Luke 2:10
"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." ~Luke 12:32
"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." ~Luke 12:32
I think this is probably one of the most common fears. All of the "what ifs" that rise up in us about the coming days cover a variety of anxieties: "What if we don't have what we need?" "What if something awful happens?" "What if I fail?" "What if nothing works out?" The future is completely unknown to us, so it makes sense that it is a temptation to fear it. We need to remember, though, that it isn't unknown to God. He knows what's going to happen, and not only that, but He is the one who orchestrates it all to be for our ultimate good. As our family has gone through the process of selling our house and buying a new one, there have been many, many temptations to fear the future. "Will our house sell in time?" "Will we get when we need from the sale?" "Will we find a new home?" "Where will we go between selling and buying?" Throughout these weeks of transition, though, I have seen God provide and guide us in amazing ways, and over it all I have strongly sensed Him saying, "Just wait. Wait until you see what I have for you!" Have any of you had the experience of getting an awesome gift or surprise for someone you love, and the barely tolerable excitement of waiting for them to see it? That's the sense I get from God: He's an excited Daddy who can't wait for His kids to see what He has in store. How could we ever fear what is to come when we keep that picture in mind?
Fear: I Have No Value
Fear Not...For You are Precious to Him
"But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine." Isaiah 43:1
And he said, “O man greatly loved, fear not, peace be with you; be strong and of good courage.” And as he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” ~Daniel 10:19
"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows." ~Matthew 10:29-31
Insecurity. Low self esteem. Social anxiety. Call it what you want, this is another very common fear for us as people, though maybe not one we are as readily willing to confess. As people, we are wired to know and be known, to experience relationship with others that allows them to see "the real us" and still enjoy and love us; and for some of us, the thought of rejection is the worst fear we hold. I can vouch for the anxiety, pain, and distraction that all of this can cause! So what is the remedy? Well, in my experience, there is nothing as healing and freeing in this arena as recognizing the truth that God not only knows us as we long to be known, but He values us and loves us. He created us, forming us exactly as He wanted to; He knows everything we like and dislike; He knows our physical forms; He knows the worst things we have done, and the moments we have been most like Him. We don't have to explain ourselves to Him, or find excuses for our quirks, struggles, or failures. He knows. And He still loves us, delights in us, considers us precious to Him. This week I read a verse that sums this up so beautifully:
"On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: 'Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing." (Zephaniah 3:16-17)
This is how God feels about you, and about me. He rejoices over us, to the point of full-on singing. There is nobody on earth who will come close to valuing you like He does, and He has the final say. So how could we ever fear that we have no worth?
"On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: 'Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing." (Zephaniah 3:16-17)
This is how God feels about you, and about me. He rejoices over us, to the point of full-on singing. There is nobody on earth who will come close to valuing you like He does, and He has the final say. So how could we ever fear that we have no worth?
"For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you." ~Isaiah 41:13
"Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel! I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord; your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel." ~Isaiah 41:14
"Thus says the Lord who made you, who formed you from the womb and will help you: Fear not, O Jacob my servant, Jeshurun whom I have chosen." ~Isaiah 44:2
At times it can feel like the work God wants us to do is impossible, right? Whether it's a huge task like leaving home to share the Gospel in a foreign country, or the daily work of training a child through a challenging behavior season, I think we have all come up against times when the work God gives us feels overwhelming. You know what, though? For every single mission or task that God gives us, He promises His help, and the harder the "job", the more He takes over and ensures we accomplish what He asks. I've heard it said that God doesn't give us more than we can handle, but the truth is that sometimes He does. We aren't meant to do the work on our own; we were made to rely on Him and to learn more and more how much we need Him to equip us. As soon as we recognize that we can't do it and ask Him to take over, He sets to work assuring that we succeed. I saw this played out in huge ways on my mission trip to Ecuador this last fall. Guys, I was terrified. So terrified that I spent almost the whole trip out there crying, believing it was a mistake that I went, and begging God to just let me go home. Obviously, I was not capable of this work on my own! Honestly, though, all of that weakness just made this truth even more evident: He comes in where we are the weakest and least able, and He takes over and equips us to do what He calls us to. And it's beyond incredible to witness.
Fear: I Can't Win This Battle
Fear Not...for He Fights for You
"And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again." ~Exodus 14:13
"Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint. Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory." ~Deuteronomy 20:3-4
"Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.” Isaiah 35:4
I think we can all think of times when we were battling something, right? Temptation, addiction, depression, anger...this life is fraught with things that are eager to take us out. The truth is that as Christians living in this world, we all have a very real enemy who is bent on destroying us, using whatever means necessary to accomplish that, and there will be times in our lives when it seems like we are going to lose the battle. Last year I faced a few very intense moments of battle with my depression, and I will never forget the deep, core-level fear that I experienced when I thought I really might be defeated. I can testify to the truth, though, that God really does fight for us, even when we ourselves have nothing left to give to the battle. When I had no one else to turn to and nothing left to fight the battle myself, I experienced God's rescue like I never had before. There is a song called "Rescue" by Lauren Daigle that I think perfectly captures God's protective, warrior heart for His people. This is the chorus:
"I will send out an army to find you in the middle of the darkest night it's true, I will rescue you. I will never stop marching to reach you in the middle of the hardest fight, it's true; I will rescue you."
"I will send out an army to find you in the middle of the darkest night it's true, I will rescue you. I will never stop marching to reach you in the middle of the hardest fight, it's true; I will rescue you."
God is an incredible Rescuer, and He promises to save us in the midst of even the worst battles we face; we don't need to be afraid of defeat with Him on our side.
Fear: ANYTHING AT ALL
Fear Not...For He is with You
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." ~Joshua 1:9
"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." ~Isaiah 41:10
This seems to be the main reason we are told not to fear, and it covers any thing we could ever be afraid of: because God is with us. He never leaves us. He is never distant, or unaware of what's happening, or distracted. He was there in our past with whatever happened; He is here now in our current situations; and He will be there with us in whatever future trials or struggles we may have, all the way through our dying day and into eternity. He isn't going anywhere. The God of the universe and Creator of everything, with more power and might and strength than we will ever fathom is always here with us. Why should we be afraid of anything? How can we fear at all when we have this at the forefront of our minds?
I think this all boils down to a choice: to focus on the fear itself, or on the reason to fear not. It isn't easy, nor is it automatic to suddenly never fear or have anxiety (believe me; I've been at this whole "fear not" battle for several years!) Ultimately, though, I am commanded not to fear--all of us are. And in His goodness, God has given us many, many reasons why we don't need to. The only thing to do now is to obey, and that's exactly what I want to do. How about you guys? Let's move forward together resolved to fear not, for all of the beautiful reasons our faithful Lord gives us.
I think this all boils down to a choice: to focus on the fear itself, or on the reason to fear not. It isn't easy, nor is it automatic to suddenly never fear or have anxiety (believe me; I've been at this whole "fear not" battle for several years!) Ultimately, though, I am commanded not to fear--all of us are. And in His goodness, God has given us many, many reasons why we don't need to. The only thing to do now is to obey, and that's exactly what I want to do. How about you guys? Let's move forward together resolved to fear not, for all of the beautiful reasons our faithful Lord gives us.
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