Choose Your Fear

Fear is defined as: to expect or worry about (something bad or unpleasant).

Innate fears vs acquired fears:

We are born with two fears: fear of falling and fear of loud noises. All other fears are learned. We are taught to fear or we have experienced something in our lives that created fear. Fear is said to be an acronym for false evidence appearing real. One study found that sixty percent of things feared never take place. Ninety percent of things feared are considered insignificant issues. Six million three hundred thousand Americans have a diagnosed fear. God says He has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline (NLT).

Godly fear: 

There is another fear that is healthy — it’s the beginning of wisdom. That is the fear of the Lord. This fear is not being afraid; it’s not fear of His wrath or a fear of eternal damnation. It is an affection for God — a reverence of Him. This is a healthy fear which is consistent with strong faith, great joy, and true courage. It’s an awesome dread of displeasing God — a deep respect of God.

Choosing your fear: 

People today believe they can become wise by life experience and academic knowledge alone. You get to choose your fear. One choice leads to the fear or fears the world brings: fear of flying, fear of failure, fear of death, fear of the dark, etc. There are so many of them. We can and will overcome our fears when we submit to the fear of God, when we serve Him because He is good and we respect Him enough to purpose to live by His word. The fear of the Lord is given to us when we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior. The fear of the Lord has no bad consequences with it — only hope.

So, let’s choose the fear that will bring blessing to our lives — the fear of the Lord.

Just a thought,

PSS