Fear comes from the enemy. It says 365 times in the Bible
not to fear…one for every day of the year! And, because God did not give us
this spirit, it comes from our enemy, Satan, who uses fear to try to stop us
from doing many things, including living to the fullest of our potential. If we
fear rejection, for example, then we may shrink back from praying with
strangers, inviting them to church, telling them about the Lord or even what He
has done in our lives. Or, if we fear failure (as I do), then we may be too
scared to use our God-given gifts in fear of adding one more failure to our
long list of previous failures. (Guilty!) Why bother anymore, we may ask. These
are only a few examples of hundreds of things that fear drives us to do…or not
do.
However, because we are “from God and have overcome…the one
who is in me is GREATER than the one who is in the world” (I John 4:4).
Therefore, in reality, the spirit of power, of love and of a sound mind is much
greater than the spirit of fear, as they come from God whereas fear comes from
the enemy (to try to destroy us).
One of the many things that the spirit of power enables us
to do is face each day with strength. We have power to stand on, because God
backs us up with this power. We have the power to overcome illness, loss and
other devastations that life can throw our way. Have you ever wondered how
someone can suffer with things like cancer, death of loved ones, job loss and
financial struggle and still have joy in their heart and strength that keeps
them going? It is only though the power that God gives that person to overcome
in the midst of great difficulty. I have had members of my own family ask me
how I can still be smiling and happy (full of joy) when I have been through so
much in my life, far more than the average person. All I can do is point toward
heaven and say “it’s only because God gives me the strength, peace and joy to
do so.” I can tell you for certain it is NOT ONLY because I am a really strong
person, but because in my weakness, God’s strength is more present and obvious
in my life. When we handle life’s difficulties well, others take notice and it
speaks volumes about our faith in God and His strength in our lives.
The spirit of love motivates us to love others, even when
they are not lovely. We are able to love the coworker who is rude, angry or
seems to enjoy ignoring or mistreating you. It may be really hard to do,
especially in our own strength, but when we pray for God to help us to see
others as He sees them and ask Him to help us love that person, He will do it! This
spirit of love will supersede what we may feel like doing, like scratching a
rude, snappy co-worker’s eyes out, for example! How many times I have had to
hold my tongue from responding not out of love, but out of the flesh. But, the results are always worth it! Case in
point…I had one co-worker with whom I worked with for two years. Almost every
day, she came in with a much less than desirable attitude and either completely
ignored me or would say something snide to me. She was one of those who enjoyed
seeing someone get in trouble and would laugh about it behind your back.
Anyway, she was one of those that was much easier to avoid than talk to. I
would rather have had a root canal than have to ask her something work-related because
of the attitude I always got.
However, after my book came out, I posted a picture of it in
the break room in case someone wanted a copy. She overheard me talking about it
being a collection of my personal testimonies and said, “I have a testimonial.”
I just about fell out of my chair because I could not believe she would have
something like that to say. It would have been easy to overlook what she said
and not respond. However, I said “Why don’t you tell me about it? I would love
to hear what your testimony is!” She proceeded to tell me about a time where
she was literally at death’s door and God intervened and did a miracle and she
survived, to which I responded, “Wow! That’s great! I’ll bet you thank God
every day for doing that for you! That is awesome! Thanks for sharing that with
me!” From that point on, she was a TOTALLY different person. She actually
started talking to me after that and her attitude did a 180 degree turn, at
least towards me personally. I think she just needed to know someone cared and
showing just a little bit of love towards her totally changed her attitude from
that day on, praise God!
The spirit of a sound mind allows us to remain calm when
everything around us seems to be falling apart and going crazy. The Lord helps
us to remain focused, disciplined and even-keeled during these times. We do not
have to go off the deep end when our world comes crashing down, because God
gives us a spirit of a sound mind. Some versions of the Bible say “spirit of
self-discipline.” This spirit allows us to remain under control when things in
life are out of control, or even to resist that extra piece of cake you want,
but do not need. It also helps us to become more disciplined in spending time
with the Lord daily when so many things fight for our time and attention, for
example. It takes self-discipline to grow any relationship, and that includes
our relationship with the Lord. So many things can get us off track (even good
things can), but He can help keep us, or get us back on, track and keep us
there.
So remember…do not fear, because God gives us so much more! J
I love the fact that "Do not fear" has been mentioned 365 times in the Bible. It really is a daily reminder for us. God knows how vulnerable humans can be that we often forget these wonderful words.
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