Facing our Fears with Love
I am still pinching myself that I now live in Austin. And, I’m all settled in. This move seemed overwhelming at the time, but now it’s in the past. I did eat that ginormous “elephant” one bite at a time. That’s how my life has changed. To have faced a giant like this years ago, would have paralyzed me in fear. But I have learned my lessons well.
It’s easy to find FEAR lurking behind every corner – even things that aren’t “elephant” sized. It can smack us in the tummy just after we’ve said, “What a great day it is!” Or right after we’ve prayed. Or right after we’ve celebrated a great victory. Maybe a negative medical report came in or a teacher’s report came in that our child is failing or we’ve lost our cell phone or our car broke down and there’s not enough in the bank to repair it. I’ve been there. I have been literally worried sick about so many things, including my finances, what people thought about me, and what tomorrow would hold for me.
Once upon a time, my husband was my “go to” guy for those things that seemed to overwhelm me. He did a great job of relieving my insecurities and concerns. He was my rock and pillar of strength. He was a man of many talents and abilities. He could fix just about anything, and if he couldn’t, he sure knew who to go for the help he needed. Yes, God was #1 for me, but right up there close to God, was my husband. So, what does a girl do when her very-close-to-God guy checks out of this earth and leaves her with facing life by herself? Oh, sweet relief. I know. God becomes her ALL in ALL! She does what she was supposed to have done long before – be her #1 for any and everything that concerns her.
For over ten years now, God has been my “go to” Lord and His perfect love has given me all the right reasons to be strong, brave, courageous AND the ability to resist fear. His LOVE is greater than any fear. 1st John 4:18 says that perfect love casts out fear. “Perfect Love” should be capitalized, because the only Perfect Love is God’s love. God IS Love. If we’re afraid of facing a person or a situation in our life, God’s love can help us put our fears to rest. That verse points out that we should be conscious of God’s love. It needs to be more than just a fact from the Bible to us. We ought to be experiencing it daily.
It would be so easy to run away from it all — but the one with undaunted faith and determination simply RISES above it all and conquers anything that resembles FEAR. We face that “elephant” or that giant. We aim our sling at its ugly head and declare: “I am more than a conqueror.” I rise above it al! After all, my PERFECT One casts out all my fears.