Refuse Fear - 1

God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. Psalm 46:1-2

As well over 100 bushfires still rage throughout New South Wales, we may well add "though fires come" to the verse above.  Many people have lost their property, their livelihood and their precious possessions in the past few days, and not only in this state.  Our hearts go out to them and our prayers go up for them. 

We are thankful for the brave men and women who are our fire fighters.  They stand within reach of the fire and fight on behalf of others.  They refuse to fear and run. They are our heroes.

God is, indeed, our refuge and our strength and we need to remember to run to him in our times of trouble, especially when we find ourselves becoming fearful. Fear is such a tool of the enemy to destroy God's people and even to keep people from really entering into a relationship with Jesus. Let's talk about the latter first. Many people who have heard the good news of the gospel fear to enter into the fullness of relationship with Jesus because of the demands he may put on their life; i.e. giving up habits, 'having' to attend church, giving up control of their lives. Some even feel that they have to 'clean themselves up first' before they will be acceptable to God....wrong! Their fear blinds them to the benefits that He offers. You see, Satan paints Jesus as 'a controller', that's because he (Satan) doesn't want to lose control of his own captives. He is the real controller and deceiver. Eve recognised that he was a deceiver way back in the Garden of Eden.

God is not a controller at all. He is the one who gives us the free will to choose life or death, blessing or cursing (Deuteronomy 30:19). When we come into relationship with Him we choose life and allow Him to lead us in the best path for our life. We give Him permission to give us the best life.

However, Christians can still be prone to fear. It is something that we must choose to refuse. We don't refuse to fear without having a foundation for hope and faith. That is why it is so important to be grounded in God's word. It is through the Bible that we begin to understand the depth and breadth of God's love for us and His power to act on our behalf (Ephesians 3:16-19). You see, knowing the love that God has for us and His desire always for the very best for 'His kids', increases our trust in His ability to guard and protect us.

How do we do this? Psalm 46:10 says "Be still and know that I am God." When we feel ourselves beginning to fear a situation we need to be still, turn to the truth of his word, remind ourselves that fear will lead to torment, faith will bring peace. In choosing to refuse fear, we choose to exercise faith and so allow God to be in control of our situation.

Prayer: Faithful Father, I thank you that you always desire what is best for me. When I am tempted to entertain fear, please help me to choose faith and so allow you to work on my behalf. Amen