Do not live in fear!

I knew a man once named Mike who was afraid of everything. I mean, literally, afraid of EVERYTHING! He was afraid of getting sick, of getting injured, of losing his job, of strife in his marriage, of giving into immoral desires, of being poor--and on top of all that he was afraid of what people thought of him with the smallest self-esteem of any person I have ever known. I asked him boldly one day, "why are you so afraid of everything?" His answer is what I expected. He answered, "I am afraid of what tomorrow might bring because I am not worthy of anything good." Wow. This guy was afraid of good things happening to him because he believed that they would be taken away. He was living in the past and never looked to the future or to any other source for joy and hope.

There are many people in our world today like Mike. Many people, especially the U.S., have hope in things that have no value. They measure their own value by the things they have, or the friends they associate with, or things they are "good" at. But those who have hope in these things must live in fear. If I put all my trust in these things I would be fearful too! But I do not fear anything. Why? Not because of my own strength and self-control. Trust me, NOT because of that! It is because there is a greater power at work within me that gives me strength every day to continue on. This power gives me hope for a future and I know without any doubt in my mind, that this power at work within me will be with me for the rest of my life and I will do things, say things, and experience things that are beyond what I can hope or imagine. This trust I have is not in things that will rust or get eaten away by moths. This hope is not in a career or status in society. No, it's an understanding of things to come, a knowledge that there is a greater power than myself and my circumstances.

I do not fear because Jesus died for my pitiful, selfish, sinful, deceitful self and gave me a new life, one full of hope, love, and confidence. I am confident God put me here on this planet in this time period for purpose and that he has done that for every other person in this world. Fear is only from those things that oppose God's plan. If we are to claim what God has purposed us for then we CANNOT live in fear. Fear is straight from the Liar and Deceiver himself, Satan. Do you have strife in your life? It is because of fear. Do you have uncertainty of what tomorrow might bring? It is because of fear.

READ the Word of God. The Bible is the best selling book of all times, not because of it's popular messages (in fact it is hated by many). It is called the Living Word because that is exactly what it is! It not merely a book with words in it. When read, the words are given power, literally. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17).

When you are hungry, do you eat? You feel hunger pains and your stomach growls. Are you feeling pain in your life? Is your body and/or your circumstances "growling" at you? We are given warning signs for purpose. If we did not feel hungry we would not eat and we would starve. As well as nourishing your body, you need to nourish your soul. In Scripture, King David declared God's Word to be sweeter than honey (see Psalm 19:10), and Job said that he treasured God's Word more than his necessary food (see Job 23:12).

Franklin D. Roosevelt said, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself." That statement has profound wisdom if looked upon in a spiritual sense. Do not let fear control you. Get into the Word of God, study it daily, keep a journal, and pray daily for the Lord of All to show you an abundant life free from fear.