Fear or Faith?
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ––James 1: 2-4
Fear opens the door to Satan. Faith opens the door to God. Both God and the enemy of God have their purposes in us.
They have their stake holders in what will be the controlling forces of our lives, and those controlling forces can be fear or the controlling forces can be faith. Both want you to trust in someone or something or some feeling, but only one has your best interests in mind. Know the intentions of someone, know the design that they have on you.
Though we all only ever live in our own heads, most of us share similar thoughts: “So what’s going to happen next, what’s my future going to be?” Or, “Lord, do you care, are you in it, are you looking out for me, and what’s your intention?” My perception of God, my perception of His motives, should inspire me, not create fear in me.
I know the Father causes all things to work together for my good and He always has, but Satan is in the same game that he was playing with Adam. When your lenses become the lens of fear, you move to self-protect, you move to self-preserve, and you get creative about guarding what you have. Anger and anxiety are typically the dark side of control, and control is the dead giveaway of fear. And that’s what Adam and Eve did: They grasped for control when the serpent deceived them into believing that they could be like God.
Contemplate the fact that research shows that more than 90 percent of our fears never come true (see yesterday’s reading). Don’t fear, He is a loving God who is working in your life to complete you. Remember, He loves you.
Father, thank you for the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome fear.