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Monday, January 28, 2008

Fear Factor

What are you afraid of? What is your greatest fear? Why do we fear certain things? Does everyone have fears or is it just me? How do we overcome fear?

Have you ever stopped to think about the things you fear? We are fearful of many different things. One of the greatest fears for a lot of us is public speaking. Some people fear riding in airplanes while others fear driving on the freeway. We fear animals, insects, heights, small spaces, snakes, the dark, the light, the outdoors, the dentist, the doctor, our boss, our spouse, our parents.....We fear we won't make enough money, loss of a job, not getting a promotion, getting a promotion, not enough responsibility, too much responsibility....Whew!!! And so on, and so on.....This is just the tip of the "fear" iceberg. The list of fears can be a long one. Some well founded mind you while others are not. It is probably a good thing to fear alligators. It's silly to fear that the Patriots won't win the Super Bowl. (I mean come on, you know they are gonna win).

It is okay to fear things in life. But we cannot allow fear to control our lives. Fear can paralyze us if we allow it and Satan knows that. Fear is one of the enemy's strongest weapons. That is why it is so important for us to turn our fears over to the Lord in prayer. Jesus promises us that we have nothing to fear, not even death. Remember when Peter saw Jesus walking on water and he wanted to walk out on the water and meet Jesus? Jesus told Peter: "Come" he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith" he said, "why did you doubt?" Mathew 14:29-31

How do we overcome fear and doubt? Fortunately, God provided us this little book called the Bible. If we read His word and apply it daily He helps us manage our fears. How do we "apply" His word? It is as simple as stopping when a negative thought enters your head and asking the Holy Spirit to give you positive, life giving words from the Bible to counteract the negative. Sometimes, I have to pause several times a day and repeat this exercise. This may be something new for you and that's okay. God wants us to pause throughout our day and reflect on Him. If we yield to Him, He will bring us freedom from our fear and give us a peace like we have never known. I invite you to try this and see if it makes a difference in your life.

Sunday, January 6, 2008

Out with the old, In with the new

Greetings and Happy New Year!! It has been a while since my last post. The holiday season always seems to be such a busy time of year. Rush, rush, rush. Sometimes we barely take time to slow down long enough to really enjoy this time of year and what it truly represents.

December is the month each year we Christians choose to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Sometimes we may forget not everyone celebrates Christmas. To a certain segment of the worlds population December is just December. But if you are a Christian this is the time of year to focus on the Christ child. God loves us so much that He sent His only son into our world in human form. Jesus came not to judge us but to serve us. Many people think of Jesus as a great leader because of the miracles He performed. But if you read the stories written in the New Testament carefully you will see that Jesus was always serving. When the multitude needed to be fed, He fed them. When the storm came upon the disciples at sea, He calmed the waters. Before His death He washed the disciples feet. By serving, He was leading. When you think of leaders today who do you think of? Your boss, the president, politicians? How many of those folks would get on their knees and wash your feet?

Then there's January. The beginning of a new year each year. A chance to start fresh. Too many times this is not the case though. We allow our past to keep us from taking that fresh start each year. I know I have been guilty of that. How bout you? For several years I have felt so bad about things in my past that I never allowed myself to start fresh. That is.......until now. This year, for the first time in a long time I am allowing the past to be the past and forgive myself. I am going to embrace God's gift of a new year to start fresh. I encourage you to do the same. We cannot change the past. But with God's help we CAN change our future.

So out with the old and in with the new. Let the past be the past and the future be the future. Our past does NOT define who we are, it molds us into who He wants us to be.