Do You Want to Lose Your Fear?
Do you want to be made well in this area?
The question seems silly at first but perhaps maintaining fear also reduces responsibility.
If we are too afraid to do something then, because we can’t do that thing, we get to sleep in.
So fear can be used to procrastinate or avoid pursuing dreams. Hmmm
Having now taken the question seriously and having decided that in fact we do want to have our fears stripped away and replaced by feelings of calm, peace, and purpose, let’s see if there is a remedy in the Bible.
Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices.
For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.
Proverbs 1:29-33 (ESV)
To remove the fear of the world from our lives we must fear God.
What does this mean?
It means take God more seriously than anything or anyone else.
Fear the one who made you. Who gives you a heart beat and a breath. Fear the one who placed you where you are and who is waiting to unleash his power into you blowing your world-based fears into the pit of hell from whence they came.
Turning our minds to God and thinking of his absolute might and control over all circumstances, including those gripping us today, removes the threat that we can be harmed beyond Gods permission and that if we are called to suffer it will be for his glory and honor and it will be absent suffering a moment due to fear and anxiety.
Think about facing surgery, or chemotherapy, or loss of a loved one, or any other threat absent the pall of fear.
What would that look like?
In the midst of heartbreak or physical pain imagine God wrapping you in an indescribable peace. It might then enable you to walk through valleys calmly knowing you are still gripped in his love never to be abandoned nor forsaken.
Now let’s go back to the Proverbs passage one more time and permit me to highlight a link that may have been hard to see at first. It answers the question about isn’t fearing God just another fear?
Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices.
For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me [chooses to fear God as instructed] WILL DWELL SECURE and WILL BE AT EASE, WITHOUT DREAD OF DISASTER.
Proverbs 1:29-33 (ESV)
What would this world be like if Christians were fearless? Might this be why Christianity is under attack?
Finally, one powerful secret weapon against all fear is worship - and worship is simply, in your own way, thanking God for being Himself.
The following song is intended as a backdrop to your own prayer time. If you just listen to it I think you will become bored. If, instead, you use it as part of your own worship, I believe whatever may be causing anxiety in you will melt away, that is if you seriously want to lose your fear. Hit play and close your eyes.