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Jul 06, 2023 06:00am

Fear

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“The Spirit that you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather the Spirit that you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by Him we cry, Abba, Father.”
Romans 8:15 (NIV)

Fear

We all hate liars and it’s always open season on exposing them! Talented Zach Williams reminds us through the lyrics of his Contemporary Christian hit song that, “Fear is a Liar”. Sadly, we tend to download and stream fear’s imposing worries and faulty perspectives of our own.

It has been said that fears are one of our biggest illusions as humans. Why? We misread them! Like most things in our day-to-day hurried schedules, we mistake the perceived challenge as a “giant”. Don’t get me wrong. Especially during a pandemic, we can choose to see many obstacles as threatening. Losing a job, contracting a potentially deadly virus, hanging on to a dwindling savings account, teaching multiple children at home, quarantining with a difficult personality, and feeling isolated can all contribute to our default setting where there’s only one response to the layers keep accumulating faster than a Tetris puzzle on the fastest speed.

Panic

May I remind you that panic is a chosen response…a popular one I might testify (I default to this more than I care to admit). It simply isn’t the completing piece in the puzzle box provided by God. Perhaps if we allowed God to determine what our “finished” puzzle image will be, it might include potentially fearful obstacles that He used to bring His greatness and beauty into focus. Don’t volunteer to lead the Fear Parade…because you will be spotted about a block away. Instead, be mindful of the promises of Romans 8. (Spoiler Alert…God wins!)

Listen closely for fear’s lies this week. Allow the Holy Spirit to replace them with the Spirit-controlled life as your default setting and watch those “giants” become part of the tapestry that God weaves into your story for His glory.