To us, this world is an uncertain place. We try to hang onto our lives as tightly as we can, keeping all the pieces exactly where we want them, afraid that something might come unglued. And when it threatens to (or actually does) we can get lost in fear.
To God, His plan is certain. Nothing can alter His Will and if we just maintain our faith in Jesus, we are completely safe in God’s hands (Romans 8:38-39, John 10:28-30). There are no circumstances God didn’t see coming and nothing He forgot to include in His plan. This allows us to change our viewpoint from anxious uncertainty to the certain knowledge that God has it all in control. That’s why we can say with David:
3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. 4 In God, whose word I praise – in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? – Psalm 56:3-4 (NIV)
Changing Perspectives
Giving in to fear is often a perspective error. When we look at our life through a fearful lens, we tend to act on only what our human eyes see. When we look at our life through a godly lens, we choose to look at God and what He promises us.
When we trusted in Jesus, we died to our old, worldly perspectives and took on a perspective of faith in God. We changed directions and are now walking towards God. The challenge is that we have to keep walking daily. Our struggle with sin in these corrupted bodies will not end until we cross into eternity, but we are called to constantly renew our minds through God’s truth (Romans 12:2). Whenever fear threatens the peace we are called to have in Jesus, we have to counter that with a conscious choice to have the right perspective (Colossians 3:2-3, 15).
Fear is a powerful emotion. Getting it to obey is often a struggle – especially if a particular fear has taken root in our hearts. Sometimes we even feel powerless, like we’re stuck in an endless loop, with no way to correct our course.
Here’s the good news: we choose how to respond to our emotions.
This might sound like a huge task. Especially if we feel stuck in that loop. We hardly have the strength to go on, much less make war against the enemy. Yet when our emotions overwhelm us, God is there, wanting to help us.
Choosing our response (although it requires will-power and lots of it) is actually an amazing gift. When fear seizes us, we know it does not have any ultimate power over us. It can’t conquer us (unless we let it), since we are God’s children and have every right to trust Him (Psalm 42:11).
That’s not to say that we can totally eliminate all of our negative emotions. We still live in a war-zone. Emotions are often pesky and unpredictable, arising at the worst times. Still, the more we train ourselves to listen to God’s voice, the more we can rest in Him, will go a long way to aid our struggle.
Jesus – Our Role Model
When Jesus lived on earth, He sometimes traveled in boats with His disciples. On one occasion, a storm arose with violent wind and waves, and the disciples were afraid for their lives. They thought they were going to drown. What was Jesus doing? He was sleeping. When the disciples woke Him, Jesus asked them why they had so little faith, why they were afraid – and then He calmed the storm.
Our hearts often have violent waves of fear washing over them, too. And we act just like the disciples. We worry and wonder if God knows what’s going on – even though Jesus is right here with us. We can’t see Him, as they could, but it makes no difference to His presence. When we rest in Jesus, He can calm our fearful storm.
Fear vs Respect
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. – Proverbs 1:7 (NIV)
God is just, holy, righteous, and worthy of our utmost respect. We should not take lightly His authority in our lives or spurn His discipline. God is also abundantly gracious, compassionate, forgiving and kind. We should not quake in terror at the thought of Him or forget His life-giving character.
Fearing God means respecting and trusting God – that is the start of everything good. Fools don’t respect God, so they miss out (Psalm 14:1a). When we walk with Jesus, striving to live our lives as He would have us, we are not afraid of God. We know that God is with us, helping us, strengthening and upholding us, and loving us. Even if we must suffer God’s discipline, the proper response is not fear, but a humble return to God through confession, understanding that He is correcting us out of love.
When we draw close to God we experience more of His goodness. He works with us tenderly as a good Father, helping us lay aside the things we are afraid of and see that we can trust in Him. And if we are in the middle of fear and remember that we should run to Him, God is always there to receive us.