Finding the Face of Our Father: Facing the Fog of Our Fears
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-Matthew 20: 1-16
-Deuteronomy 1:26-33
-John 15: 14-15
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Grapes of Grace by Lisa Curry
Speak Life by Katherine Ruonala
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“Your fear is pointing to the deepest lie you believe about God, yourself, and/or others.” - Lisa Curry
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Poetry goes here
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-Grapes of Grace, Lisa Curry
-Speak Life, Katherine Ruonala
- jennieallen.com/podcast (Jamie Winship: Conflict Zones, The CIA, and Listening to God; How to Stop Fear From Running Your Life)
- Documentary: After Life
The God Who Calms Our Fears
by Wendy Gerdes
“I prayed to the LORD, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears.” Psalm 34:4 (NLT)
When our four kids were young, they loved going to the zoo and watching the animals play and interact. One of their favorite exhibits was the Aquarium where they could watch the Puffer Fish expand into large balls. They would try various antics to get the fish to respond and were never disappointed. There was always laughter and a lot of fascination.
It is well-known in the animal world that when threatened, many species become aggressive, make themselves appear larger, play dead, change colors and have various other behaviors aimed at keeping them safe. I am always fascinated by their self-protective measures, but when I look at me, I see many of the same responses.
With some, I become aggressive and go into attack mode when a behavior makes me feel insecure or hits on an old wound. With others, I try to make myself bigger. As a stay-at-home, homeschooling mom for many years, it did not take long to find out that some people did not take me very seriously. It seemed a question would hang in the air, “Yeah, but what else?” I found myself trying to validate myself and find something others would think worthy of respect. Sometimes, with the more aggressive sorts, I play dead and become a doormat to protect myself from their aggression and make sure I am not a target. Other times, I change my behavior to match the expectations or the others in the room. I say things I shouldn’t say or don’t say things I should say.
None of these behaviors allow me to love others well no matter how much I desire to. I cannot live both a self-protective life and a loving life. My fear is so often the gulf between who I am and who I want to be.
I have heard it said that the opposite of love is not hate but fear. Wherever fear is present, love will be absent. Our fears, whatever they may be, keep us living our lives with a posture of self-protectiveness rather than one that is capable of loving.
Growing in love looks a lot like laying down our fear and self-protective ways a little at a time, but we cannot lay down our fears without knowing we are safe. The truth is, people are often not safe and our interactions with people often account for the fears we have developed. Where do we go to find the safety we so need to overcome our fear?
We cannot calm our own fears, but as we continually bring our fears to God and listen to what He is saying to us, we find our fears are calmed a little at a time. His love calms our fears. This doesn’t usually happen all at once. Fears are gradually replaced with a rootedness and trust in God. As we learn God’s heart for us and we are truly never alone, we develop the ability to love others better and eventually well. We do not need to be afraid, ashamed or fearful of our fears but rather see them as opportunities and places to experience God’s love where we haven’t before. Fear is our opportunity to turn towards God and we will always find Him turned toward us. He understands every fear we have and knows what to do. We can trust Him with us.
To read more by Wendy click here
