Psalm 111:10

God’s Word tells us that we get wisdom by fearing God. Does this mean you and I should tremble and shake at God? How can we reconcile the God who desires relationship with the God who asks us to fear Him? Godly fear doesn’t immobilize. Godly fear doesn’t bring horror or dread. Godly fear brings awe. This fear brings respect for the hugeness of God. Every time angels appear in the Bible, they say, “Do not be afraid.” Why did they say it? Because the people were afraid! When a messenger from God or the presence of God invades your life, you realize He is so far beyond you and your abilities that it causes you to fall to your knees. A woman who fears God understands how much bigger He is than she is.

 

There are so many other benefits of fearing the Lord. If we fear God, then we have a secure fortress and a refuge for our children (Proverbs 14:26). The fear of the Lord adds length to our lives and does not cut our lives short (Proverbs 10:27). The eyes of God are upon us if we fear Him (Psalm 33:18). Fearing man and the things of this world is a snare, but fearing God births wisdom (Proverbs 29:25). My favorite Scripture about fearing God is Psalm 25:14 which says that God confides in those who fear Him. God tells His secrets to us.

 

This life is full of very real threats. Psalm 91:1, 5 tell us the woman who dwells with God “will not fear the terror of night.” We don’t have to be afraid if we receive a call from a loved one in the middle of the night. We don’t have to be afraid when we can’t sleep because of our aching heart or aching body, nor do we fear the arrows that fly by day. We do not let the spirit of fear rule us when we receive bad news from the doctor, the court system, or our children’s school. If these things or some other bad things happen to us, then you and I must realize it is just one more time to turn to our God and only fear Him. God does not give us the spirit of unholy fear. Our enemy does.

 

After writing the previous paragraph about fear yesterday, you can guess what happened to me. My oldest daughter won a trip for memorizing her Bible verses at Awana. She is leaving this weekend to go out of state. I am not going with her. The thought of her being outside my reach made a bit of fear rise up in me. I had to address this fear and put it in its place. I asked God, “Why did it happen?” I usually never have any fear over something I know He has called us to do.

 

I believe God spoke to my heart saying something like, “I am reminding you afresh what it is like to have fear so you can share with them how to handle fear. Do not just tell them the attitude and ‘turn to me.’ Tell them how to handle it.” 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that God does not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline.

 

There is power in the Word of God. I will say it over and over. There is more power in praying God’s Word than there will ever be in our words. If you want to be powerful, know His Word. Learning and memorizing His Word to be able to pray it in any type of situation is as necessary to us as when King David’s mighty men practiced with physical swords for their battles. When fear comes my way, I recount the Scripture. I have learned to pray Psalm 91 – all 16 verses. I know it slowly, and I know it with an incredible speed when I need a quick infusion of courage. I have many other Scriptures in my heart, but this one is my favorite. God gave it to me three weeks before 9/11 in 2001, the day of terror in our country. There are many other Scriptures that deal with fear. The point is these Scriptures make me recount what my God has promised me. Igniting this power through the combination of self-discipline to know the Scriptures and love for Him and from Him will enable you and me to reject fear.

 

Kay Arthur tells a story of a woman in a hospital during a battle. Bombs are going off everywhere outside - including close to her window. When she felt the terror begin to come over her, she put her hand to her chest. Her fingers took hold of an invisible object as if it were a baseball. She threw the invisible baseball at the window and said, “That spirit does not come from my God, and I refuse it!” She could not physically grab the spirit, but she put her physical body through the motions of what was going on inside her spirit. She would not embrace fear but only embraced her God.

 

Fearing failure should never keep you and me from doing things. A fear of appearing foolish should never stop us from doing what God tells us to do.  Fear that we are not enough will rob us of some of the biggest joys of our lives. We can’t shrink back from being involved. We can’t doubt how God could ever use us. Feelings of inadequacy that incapacitate us mean we fear the wrong thing. We should fear disobeying God more than we ever fear anything of the world. One of my favorite quotes is below: