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May 26, 2021 08:00am

Walking in the Fullness of God’s Love

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Today I’m welcoming my friend Wendy Blight to share from her new Bible study on 1 John, I Am Loved: Walking in the Fullness of God’s Love.

Many of us live controlled by fear. It often arises in the form of a condition . . . something bad might happen. It’s the“what ifs.”

My plane might go down in mid-air.

My mammogram might reveal cancer. I might lose my job. My child might get kidnapped.

My husband might be having an affair.

We mightnot be able to pay our bills.

Most of the time, our “conditional might” has no basis in reality. It finds its roots in something from our past, something we’ve read online, or something we’ve seen on television. It looms large in our imaginations and eventually activates a state of heightened anxiety.

Whether we fear the known or the unknown, fear is a thief. Like a runaway train, it steals our joy, our peace, our contentedness. It robs us of sleep. At its core, fear prevents us from living God’s promised abundant life.

I asked some friends to share their fears. Maybe you’ll relate to some fears here . . .

“I fear I’m not good enough; I won’t fit in.”
“I fear I’ll never measure up to the woman (wife, mother… fill in the blank) God and everyone else wants me to be.”
“I fear I’ll never find anyone to love me.”
“I fear my husband will leave me.”
“I fear my children getting hurt or very sick, being kidnapped, failing, making wrong choices.”
“I just graduated from college, and I fear I’ll never find a job.”
“I’m afraid none of this (God, Jesus) is real.”

Fears are inescapable because we have an enemy who pounces on those places of insecurity and anxiety and magnifies them until they become fears . . . sometimes paralyzing fears. It’s what we do with those fears that matters.

As children of the One True God, our Father tells us a few things about fear:

“God is love . . . There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.” (1 John 4:16-18a)

“God did not give us a cowardly spirit but a powerful, loving, and disciplined spirit.” (2 Timothy 1:7)

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)

Notice what Paul says in Romans 8:37. We are not just conquerors; we are MORE than conquerors.

Our challenge, and my goal for us as daughters of the King, is to believe these truths so deeply that we not only combat fear but also fully and completely overcome it!

Scripture gives us a process . . .

Step One: Recognize and confess your fear.

Step Two: Analyze and understand your fear and from where it comes.

Step Three: Identify a biblical truth to combat and overcome that fear.

Remember, nearly all fears are “conditional mights,” meaning they are future based. They haven’t happened yet, but they might happen. They are “maybes.” It’s more likely than not that they won’t happen, but we still fear them.

That fear of the unknown is very real. It’s why God speaks to fear over 300 times in the Bible. God knew we would struggle with it, so He equipped us with biblical tools and examples to overcome that fear. He gave us His Word to speak truth over our fears.

Allow God’s Word to saturate every part of your being because without truth reigning and ruling over your life, you will be easily swayed by Satan’s lies, entangled in his schemes, and crippled by his cunning.

When we overcome our fears, we are bolder and braver; able to step out in faith for God. To love . . . to serve . . . to give . . . confidently and sacrificially.