Fear vs. Faith

Ruth Jaehne is a creative thinker, graphic designer, and artist. With a love for adventure and travel, she spent her university years in Ireland and is now based in U.K. with her husband Ashton. She remains set on using her talents to spread the gospel and display the “God-colours” in the world (Matt 5:14-16 MSG). Her topic today?

FEAR vs FAITH

 Where do you stand when you fear something: in the world or in The Word? As Christians, this is a somewhat easy question to answer. But do we live this answer out?

The phrase “Do not be afraid” is written in the Bible 365 times as a daily reminder not to authorize fear. [1] On the one side, this is an immense encouragement that God cares so much for his children to remind us or even command us daily not to be afraid. Conversely, it’s also important to acknowledge or not be oblivious to the daily fears that creep into our lives in our present world.

So, what is fear? One of my favourite ways to define FEAR is by the abbreviation: False Evidence Appearing Real. And how can we counteract fear? With FAITH – which can be abbreviated as Forsaking All I Trust Him. And how can we develop such faith? Through the following disciplines: Remove, Remember, Resist, Renew. 

REMOVE. If God is unconcerned with our past, then why should we be? We often carry fear-filled luggage from our past into our present, hindering us from running the race at full steam that God has for us. In Hebrews 12 :1 (NLT), Paul calls us to “…strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.” Paul also personally shares, “…I am still not all I should be, but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God is calling us up to heaven because of what Christ Jesus did for us.” Philippians 3:13 – 14 (TLB) 

REMEMBER. Our second discipline is remembering the heavenly reward God has so graciously set before us. When our focus is on the prize, it makes it easier to remove what isn’t benefiting the growth of our faith. We can see this in 1 Corinthians 9:25 – 26 (NIV) “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.” We are also encouraged in Hebrews 6: 12 (MSG), “Don’t drag your feet. Be like those who stay the course with committed faith and then get everything promised to them.”

RESIST. The third discipline is learning to resist the feeling of fear. Strengthening this discipline helps align our focus on our faith. Let’s say you are climbing a steep mountain — fear will keep you looking back, leaving you to trip on everything in front of you. But if you resist looking back and choose to look forward, faith keeps your eyes sturdy on the top of the mountain and its reward. “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” Galatians 6:9 (NIV). And in our shortcomings, we know we can call upon the Lord as the Psalmists did in Psalm 94:19 (TLB), “Lord, when doubts fill my mind, when my heart is in turmoil, quiet me and give me renewed hope and cheer.”

RENEW. When we get into the habit of renewing our faith, we are closing the door to fear and not allowing it a seat at the table. If you are facing a fearful situation, I will encourage you to renew your faith through prayer, reading scripture, and surrounding yourself with a Christ-centered community. Even Jesus remained disciplined in renewing his faith, namely when he prayed to God in the garden of Gethsemane the night before he was arrested[2][2]. In doing so, the reliance became solely on God, not the situation. “That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.” 2 Corinthians 4:16 (NLT)

I pray that you live your life unaccompanied by fear and entirely in faith, taking up your cross daily and declaring, “Forsaking All I Trust Him”. Hebrews 12: 12 (TLB) encourages us to “Keep your eyes on Jesus, our leader and instructor. He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterwards, and now he sits in the place of honour by the throne of God.” And even when our FAITH is low, may we remember that when we are faithless, He remains faithful[3]. How great is our God!

  [1]https://kingdavid.wordpress.com/2014/09/08/do-not-be-afraid-365-times-in-the-bible-one-everyday/

[2] Matthew 26:36-46

[3] 2 Timothy 2:13