Living Without Fear 1

 Living Without Fear Series

   The word fear in English and Greek is phobia.  I once woke up in my house near my reading light and there was a humongous beetle crawling up the wall near me.  I was telling a former church friend in Florida about it ( he was a Deacon in a PCA Church) and his reply got me laughing.  Of course I did not want to laugh at the time.  He said, " Maybe he wants to say hi to you in the morning."  He usually had a good joke or kidded me when I knew him in Miami.  He had not changed .

   If we live on the fear line in our lives then there is something that can correct and help us---we fail to act because of our beliefs unfortunately in a good way because we are afraid.  " My fear is really loneliness for God. Therefore I will claim His promise to never leave me or forsake me" ( Lloyd Ogilivie ) Hebrews 13:5-6.  " Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for He has said, ' I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. ' So that we may boldly say,' The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.' "

My first unit in the Army was a light infantry unit of 350 or so Soldiers called the Wolfhounds  ( the Headquarters 1st Sergant even got a Wofhound and it wandered around the company--- their motto was , " Nec aspera terrant"  - no fear on earth.  I wondered how they had that.  Big gun?

  There is a lot to be fearful about.  Health, Sickness, Being in the Hospital or nursing home, lack of funds, gas prices, Balloons spying on us for the future conflict?, ---We call that the outer world of fear.  How about the inner fears we have?  What happens if that person hates me ?  What happens if I fail?  Can I do the task at hand without falling?  Does God really know and love me and direct my paths in this short time I have here on earth?

  I have always loved the Isaiah reading 41 : " Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, yes I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." It is liking shaking hands.  We look the person right in the eye, shoulder to shoulder, and receive a greeting.  The Lord's greeting is that He does uphold us with His righteous hand.  We are not alone.  We are not drifting.  

Even in our deepest sadnesseses,  or seeing the triumph of the earthly rulers who do wicked things, we know He will help us and strengthen us .  He is with you and I.  There is nothing that can separate us from the love of God. And even better He ordains all and creates a path for us to fulfill His will , even when we are thwarted by unrighteous people in trying to do it.  Sometimes we are the people who object to His will.  We are not God.  He is in charge of our lives. Thank God!  I would not want anyone else in charge.

The Second Reading from the Gospel today of John is a remarkable one in its direct words, " they were afraid.   But He saith unto them, ' It is I ; be not afraid.' " 6:20  So how can we apply this to our lives now?  Realize that we too are much like the disciples in the boat and the storm.  We too experience many such things, but Jesus who is the I am ....says to us as well, " Be not afraid...It is I."

We can hear this in another way in the second step of this process, " I will overcome my crippling fears with a creative fear of God expressed with awe and wonder, adoration and faithful obedience.  He is the only Person I have to please." Lloyd Ogivlive  That definitely is counter to our world!

Christians have long been doing these counter- cultural things....confessing Christ thru baptism, belief in God's laws and love , catechetical instruction from the Scriptures and practicing their faith despite the world ....This is seen in the Sacrament of Holy communion where Christ is truly present in the hearts of the believers.

This turns out to be a long process of patient feeding on Christ in the Word, the Sacraments and the fellowship of like-minded believers who worship despite how the culture disparges them.

" Famed World War II tank commander General George Patton said, “Courage is fear holding on a minute longer.” If you give in to your fears, you are on the path to defeat. If instead you stand strong in spite of your fears, you are on the path to victory. And we must never forget that we are not in the battle alone. With the power of God on our side, we cannot be defeated."  ministry127.com

A mother and her four-year-old daughter were preparing to retire for the night. The child was afraid of the dark, and the mother, on this occasion alone with the child, felt fearful also. When the light was out, the child caught a glimpse of the moon outside the window. “Mother,” she asked, “is the moon God’s light?”

“Yes,” said the mother.

The next question was, “Will God put out His light and go to sleep?”

The mother replied, “No, my child, God never goes to sleep.”

Then out of the simplicity of a child’s faith, she said that which gave reassurance to the fearful mother, “Well, as long as God is awake, there is no sense both of us staying awake.” ministry127.com

What are you afraid of?  The LORD is my light and my salvation.  Of whom shall I then be afraid? Psalm 27

Let us pray, "  O MOST loving Father, who willest us to give thanks for all things, to dread nothing but the loss of Thee, and to cast all our care on Thee, who carest for us; Preserve us from faithless fears and worldly anxieties, and grant that no clouds of this mortal life may hide from us the light of that love which is immortal, and which thou hast manifested unto us in thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ( 1928 Book of Common Prayer)