“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”
Psalm 23:4 (ESV) One of the common sources of stress is loss. You can lose your job, your health, your money, your reputation, or a loved one. And the coronavirus pandemic is most likely amplifying the stress. When people go through loss, there are two common reactions. One is fear, and the other is grief. Grief is good. Grief is the way we get through the transitions of life. In fact, if you don’t grieve, you get stuck! Grief will not kill you if you let it out. Fear, on the other hand, can be a bad thing. Not once in the Bible does it say, “Grieve not,” “Sorrow not,” “Weep not,” or “Cry not.” What it does say is “Fear not.” And it says that 365 times! Because grief doesn’t paralyze us, but fear does. In Psalm 23:4, David says, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (ESV). David knew shepherds always carried a rod and a staff to protect their sheep. And he knew God had the power to protect him. So David trusted God, even in the darkest valleys. We’re collectively going through a dark valley right now, and we can choose to trust God—even in the shadows, where it doesn’t make sense and when it can seem like a long way out of the valley. But, here’s the good news to remember about big, scary shadows. You can’t have a shadow without light. If you see a shadow, that means there is a light shining nearby. So the key when you’re going through the valley of the shadow is to turn your back on the shadow and look at the light. Because as long as you keep your eyes on the light—Jesus, the Light of the World—the shadow won’t scare you. Just like David, trust God in the dark valleys, and pray, “When I am overwhelmed, you alone know the way I should turn” (Psalm 142:3 NLT).
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“There is no fear in love. But perfect love casts out all fear” (1 John 4:18 NIV).
Everyone has fears. Your problem isn’t that you’re afraid. It’s what you do with the fear that really matters. Jesus tells us in John 8:32, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (NIV). I could share at least a dozen biblical ways to get over fear, but here are two ideas you can start with right now. Practice the presence of Jesus. Learn the habit of reminding yourself every single moment of the day, “God is with me.” Practice talking to him all the time—when you’re walking down the street, getting in your car, or even taking a bath. When you do that, you will realize he’s always with you. You don’t have to “spend some time” with God. All your time can be “God time.” When you become aware of God’s presence in your life, fear will go away. When God is near, you lose your fear. Why? Because God is love, and the Bible says: “There is no fear in love. But perfect love casts out all fear” (1 John 4:18 NIV). The more you feel loved by God, the less you’ll fear. Move against the fear. You can’t go around, over, or under fear. You must go straight through it. You need to do what you fear the most. That’s called faith. You need to open the door of the closet and see for yourself that the bogeyman isn’t as big as you thought he was. Fear is always worse than reality. The fear of failure is worse than failure. Failure is no big deal. You just get up and start over. The fear of rejection is worse than rejection. The fear of embarrassment is worse than embarrassment. Why? Because the fear goes on for hours and days and years. Fear is “False Evidence Appearing Real.” Fear is a fake. These solutions won’t just help you deal with fear. You can use them to help others, too. You likely know lots of people dealing with fear in some area of their lives. Pass these principles on to them. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10 NIV).
What keeps you from developing your full potential? Fear. What keeps you from becoming all God wants you to be? Fear. What keeps you from building a legacy that will last into eternity? Fear. There are three kinds of fear that will keep you from developing your talents and accomplishing your purpose. Self-doubt. It keeps people locked in a prison and unable to develop their potential. This is actually the fear of failure. But failure doesn’t have to be fatal! In fact, the fear of failure is far worse than failure itself. Failure actually can be a good thing. Failure is how you learn what doesn’t work. And it’s how you grow. Don’t let self-doubt keep you down. It's better to attempt to do something great and fail than attempt to do nothing and succeed. Self-consciousness. If you worry about what other people think, nothing will ever get done in your life. You just have to do what God tells you to do. That’s all you’re accountable for. You’re not called to be the best in the world. You’re called to be the best that God made you to be. Self-pity. There were two disciples who had spectacular failures. Peter and Judas both denied Jesus in clutch time, but each responded to his failure differently. Judas went out and had a pity party and then hung himself. Peter, on the other hand, wept bitterly, grieved about it, repented, asked God to forgive him, picked himself up, and went back to serving God. And just a few weeks later, Peter spoke to the crowds in Jerusalem on Pentecost, and 3,000 people became believers—and the church was born. Of all the people God could have used to start the church, he used the guy with the biggest failure. That means there’s room for you in the family of God! Instead of living in fear, believe what God says about you in Ephesians 2:10: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (NIV). “For the Holy Spirit, God’s gift, does not want you to be afraid of people, but to be wise and strong, and to love them and enjoy being with them” (2 Timothy 1:7 TLB).
If you want to connect with someone, you’ve got to be willing to take the first step. This often requires courage. Why? Because it’s fear that disconnects human beings. When we’re full of fear and anxiety, we don’t get close to others. In fact, we back off. We’re afraid of being rejected, manipulated, vulnerable, hurt, used. All of these fears cause us to stay disconnected in life. This fear is as old as humanity itself. When Adam and Eve sinned and God came looking for Adam, Adam said, “I was afraid, and I hid.” People have been doing that ever since. We’re afraid, so we hide. We hide our true selves. We don’t let people know what we’re really like, because if we do and they don’t like us, we face rejection. And so we pretend. Fear does three terrible things to relationships:
So where do you get the courage to take the first step to connect with someone and go to a deeper level of intimacy? You get it from God’s Spirit in your life. The Bible says, “For the Holy Spirit, God’s gift, does not want you to be afraid of people, but to be wise and strong, and to love them and enjoy being with them” (2 Timothy 1:7 TLB). How do you know when you’re filled with God’s Spirit? You’re more courageous in your relationships. You love people. You enjoy being with them. You’re not afraid of them, because God’s Spirit is in your life. The Bible says that “God is love” and “Love casts out all fear.” The more of God you have in your life, the less fear you’re going to have. “God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7 NIV).
When we’re full of fear and anxiety, we don’t get close to others. We back off from the people around us. We’re afraid of being rejected, manipulated, vulnerable, hurt, or used. All of these fears cause us to disconnect in life. This fear is as old as humanity. When Adam and Eve sinned, and God came looking for them, Adam said, “I was afraid and I hid.” People have been doing that since. We’re afraid, so we hide. We hide our true selves. We don’t let people know what we’re really like. We don’t let them see inside of us. Why? Because if we let people know what we’re like and they don’t like it, we’re up a creek without a paddle. Tough luck. Why am I afraid to tell you who I am? Because if I tell you who I am but you don’t like me, then I have to deal with rejection and disappointment. So we wear masks and we pretend. Fear does three terrible things to relationships. Our fears make us defensive. We’re afraid to reveal ourselves, so we defend ourselves. When people point out our weaknesses, we retaliate and shift into defense mode. Our fears keep us distant. We don’t let people get close to us. We want to withdraw, pull back. We want to hide our emotions. We don’t want to be open and honest. We become defensive and distant. Our fears make us demanding. Whenever we’re insecure, and the more insecure we are, the more we try to control. So we try to have the last word in a relationship. We try to dominate, control. It’s always a symptom of fear and insecurity. Where can you get the confidence and courage of taking the first step in connecting with someone, to go into a deeper intimacy? You get it from God’s Spirit in your life. Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 1:7, “For the Holy Spirit, God’s gift, does not want you to be afraid of people but to be wise and strong [in other words, courageous], and to love them and enjoy being with them” (TLB). How do you know when you’re filled with God’s Spirit? You’re more courageous in your relationships. You love people. You enjoy being with them. You’re not afraid of them because God’s Spirit is in your life. The Bible says that “God is love” and “Love casts out all fear.” The more of God you have in your life, the less fear you’re going to have in your life. So the starting point in connecting with anybody is to pause, pray, and say, “God, give me the courage to take the first step.” You can do that now with a person you want to connect with. “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me” (Psalm 23:4 NLT).
What things are you worried about? The economy? Your health? Your bills? Your kids? Are you worried about the future? You can find lots of reasons to be afraid in today’s world, but God promises that even in your darkest valleys, he is walking beside you. There are about 365 verses in the Bible that say, “Fear not.” God provided us with one “fear not” message for every day of the year! Perhaps God is saying, “Get the message. Don’t be afraid.” It’s interesting that almost every time God talks to someone in the Bible, the first thing he says is, “Don’t be afraid!” Why? Because our hurts and hang-ups can often cause us to think that God is out to get us, that all he wants to do is condemn us and punish us. But that simply isn’t true, and Jesus is the proof of that. When we understand God’s grace and mercy, we have no need to fear the future. God isn’t trying to get even with you. Jesus has taken the penalty for everything you’ve ever done wrong or will do wrong. He paid for it on the cross. So when a bad thing happens, you don’t have to think that God’s getting even with you; instead, remember this: “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me” (Psalm 23:4 NLT). “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4 ESV).
One of the common sources of stress is loss. You can lose your job, your health, your money, your reputation, or a loved one. When people go through loss, there are always two common reactions. One is fear, and the other is grief. Grief is good. Grief is the way we get through the transitions of life. In fact, if you don’t grieve, you get stuck! Grief will not kill you if you let it out. On the other hand, fear is a bad thing. Not once in the Bible does it say, “Grieve not,” “Sorrow not,” “Weep not,” or “Cry not.” What it does say is “Fear not.” And it says that 365 times! Grief doesn’t paralyze, but fear does. David says in Psalm 23:4, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (ESV). Shepherds always carried a rod and a staff to protect their sheep. David knew that in the same way, God has the tools to protect him, and he trusted God, even in the darkest valleys. Perhaps you are going through the valley of the shadow right now — maybe the valley of the shadow of death. It may be the valley of the shadow of debt. It may be the valley of the shadow of conflict. It may be the valley of the shadow of depression. It may be the valley of the shadow of discouragement. Shadows are scary. Remember being afraid of shadows when you were lying in bed as a kid? Here a few things about shadows. First, shadows can’t hurt you. Second, shadows are always bigger than the source. And — here’s the good news — wherever there’s a shadow, there has to be a light. You can’t have a shadow without light. So the key when you’re going through the valley of the shadow is to turn your back on the shadow and look at the light. Because as long as you keep your eyes on the light — Jesus, the light of the world — the shadow won’t scare you. That’s how you go through the valley of the shadow of death. That’s how you lower your stress. You trust God in the dark valleys, just like David, who prayed, “When I am ready to give up, he knows what I should do” (Psalm 142:3 GNT). Get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls." (James 1:21 NLT)
We've all noticed that the quality of reception on a cell phone varies widely. The same is true with you. You must be positioned correctly in order to hear God speak. Sometimes we never give God a chance to talk to us. We've made up our minds. We want to do what we want to do, not what God wants us to do. Our hearts are hardened, and we're unwilling to listen. When you have a closed mind, of course He's not going to talk to you! But if you really want to hear from God - and what believer doesn't? - you have to understand what is keeping you from hearing from God. There are three mental barriers that keep your mind closed to God's message. 1. Pride. If you think you don't need God in your life and want to handle things yourself, you're probably not listening for God to speak. Pride keeps you from being open to the possibility that God might want to say something to you. 2. Fear. A lot of people can't hear God speak because they're afraid to hear God speak. Maybe you think that hearing God's voice makes you some kind of religious fanatic. 3. Bitterness. When you hold on to hurt, resentment, or a grudge, then you're not going to be able to hear God, because your heart is hardened. It has grown cold and made you defensive, even to God's love. Some of you have been hurt badly, whether it happened this week or years ago, and you're still holding on to it. I want to tell you that you've got to let it go. Not for their sake, but for your sake. The resentment is killing you! Resentment is a self-inflicted wound that allows people from your past to continue to hurt you today. You need to let it go, not because they deserve forgiveness but because you need to get on with your life. You need to get rid of the bitterness, fear, and pride that keep you from hearing God's voice and living out His purpose for your life. James 1:21 says, "Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls." (ESV). "Receive with meekness, or humbly accept," means you let go of your pride and stop trying to figure it out on your own. This is the key to opening your mind and heart so that you can hear from the Lord. |
AuthorTaken from Daily Hope by Rick Warren. Categories
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