Have no fear. That is so much easier to say than to live out. I am by nature a very fearful person; not to be confused with a person to fear. All of my life I have struggled with issues related to shyness, fear of all sorts of things being very much a part of that. Today I am very convicted about how those fears have interfered with my obedience to the Lord.
This morning I read the section in Numbers where Caleb and Joshua have their say with the people of Israel (Numbers 14:6-9), "Only do not rebel against the LORD; and do not fear the people of the land....the LORD is with us, do not fear them." (verse 9, in part)
I have come a long way from the young girl who would become physically ill at the mere thought of being called on by her teachers. I have such a fear of failure, of looking foolish, that it has at times crippled me as a servant of the King. What comes so easily in writing is a struggle if I have to actually talk to someone. In comparison to the men of Israel my fears seem so silly. I am not going into battle with mighty men of great stature. The giants I face are in my mind. But for me they are huge, and each day I trust in the Lord and go out to face those giants is a great victory. Sometimes it comes in the form of speaking up at Bible study instead of whispering my thoughts to my husband and hoping he does it for me, or worse yet, remaining quiet when I feel the Spirit prodding me. Sometimes it comes in the form of agreeing to be a part of ministries that mean I need to meet new people and engage them in conversation. Sometimes it even means getting up in front of people and speaking to a crowd. Mainly it means that my love for the Lord is greater than my love for myself; that I am willing to face my fears because I do not want to let Him down.
Looking back over my life I can see how the Lord has been at work all this time slaying those giants I fear and has been helping me not to succumb to those fears as often as I used to. My knees still knock and my stomach still churns at times; so I cling to verses like the one in my reading today, "Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but to trust the LORD means safety." (Proverbs 29:25, NLT) I do not know what giants you face each day, but I pray we both find strength in the Lord to "fear not."
Grace and Peace,
This morning I read the section in Numbers where Caleb and Joshua have their say with the people of Israel (Numbers 14:6-9), "Only do not rebel against the LORD; and do not fear the people of the land....the LORD is with us, do not fear them." (verse 9, in part)
I have come a long way from the young girl who would become physically ill at the mere thought of being called on by her teachers. I have such a fear of failure, of looking foolish, that it has at times crippled me as a servant of the King. What comes so easily in writing is a struggle if I have to actually talk to someone. In comparison to the men of Israel my fears seem so silly. I am not going into battle with mighty men of great stature. The giants I face are in my mind. But for me they are huge, and each day I trust in the Lord and go out to face those giants is a great victory. Sometimes it comes in the form of speaking up at Bible study instead of whispering my thoughts to my husband and hoping he does it for me, or worse yet, remaining quiet when I feel the Spirit prodding me. Sometimes it comes in the form of agreeing to be a part of ministries that mean I need to meet new people and engage them in conversation. Sometimes it even means getting up in front of people and speaking to a crowd. Mainly it means that my love for the Lord is greater than my love for myself; that I am willing to face my fears because I do not want to let Him down.
Looking back over my life I can see how the Lord has been at work all this time slaying those giants I fear and has been helping me not to succumb to those fears as often as I used to. My knees still knock and my stomach still churns at times; so I cling to verses like the one in my reading today, "Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but to trust the LORD means safety." (Proverbs 29:25, NLT) I do not know what giants you face each day, but I pray we both find strength in the Lord to "fear not."
Grace and Peace,
I would love to hear about your own journeys. Feel free to share what God is teaching you, as well as your thoughts on my musings. May we grow in wisdom and understanding together.
1 comment:
Understand! I agree, too, that my word 'accept' is a scary one and actually not one I would ever have chosen. Thanks for your prayers!
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