FEAR, WORRY, DOUBT?

Living in a world of turmoil, it is almost impossible to live without fear, worry and doubt, but in a real sense, those who believe in Jesus and want have want to have victory over sin, should not entertain these demons.  They are not of God. God’s design is for us is; faith, love, peace and all His goodness and mercy as we embrace grace and obedience. What is your fear? What do you worry about? Do you have doubts?  Is it worth the stress that comes with entertaining these emotions? What did Jesus say about fear, worry and doubt as opposed to faith?  It is important that you are clear on these issues. 

The person who is fearful, worries and has doubts at all times, has not experienced perfect love and should therefore ascertain the causes of those emotions and set goals to demolish those strongholds and experience God’s  perfect love that will drive out all  fear, worry and doubt. We do not experience perfect love because our faith is not strong enough to believe fully/totally in what Jesus has said, done and promised.

Fear, worry and doubt are triplets, born in the womb of lack of faith. They are monsters that people allow to control them. Why do people fear, worry and doubt unnecessarily, when Jesus said that we shouldn’t? People worry about a myriad of things; death, finances, loss of a job, losing loved ones, rejection, accident, who is President, among other things. As a result, many are afraid to take the next step, afraid to fail, afraid of what might be. 

You will never know what might be if you do not try. This kind of fear can interrupt a person’s destiny, because they are crippling and can keep people in the same spot when God needs for them to move to something else. Perhaps unbelievers have all the reasons to live in fear, worry and doubt, but for the believers, these things should not be allowed to manifest in our lives for long periods, because God has given many promises to the believers to guard against fear, worry and doubt. His love shields us from these demons. The Apostle John comforts us with these words:

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love (1 John 4:18).

Peter also reminds us: And above all things have fervent love among yourselves: for love shall cover a multitude of sins (1 (Peter 4:8).

 I find that both un-believers and believers alike go through periods of fear, worry and doubt. There are times when believers are saturated in God's divine love and peace that fear, worry and doubt are second nature or non-existence. Then there are other times when we find ourselves caught in the web of fear, worry and doubt, struggling to get out. For some unexplainable reasons, we have forgotten about God’s mercy, love grace, promises and have become distracted or confused.

When we exercise faith, hope and trust in our heavenly Father, these moments are passing ones; though they will come, they simply cannot linger too long. When we can get back into focusing on the light, the darkness will quickly disappear. The problem is that we are sometimes so deep in the pit, valley or wilderness that we cannot see the light. In times like these the believer must take the attitude of: “I am going to press through this, because, this too shall pass.”

There are always going to be situations, conditions, predicaments, disappointments and things that get in our way to tempt us into having fear, worry and doubt, but if we hold to the truths in God’s Word; we can starve fear, worry and doubt with faith, trust in God, His love and peace. For those who trust and believe in Almighty God, they have the authority to conquer the fear that the enemy has imposed upon them. It is in the midst of our storms, in the deepest and darkest moments of our struggles that God suddenly does something to remind us that He is right here with us. Oh, I praise Him so much!

God suddenly picked Joseph up out of the pit and we see a marvelous end result! Jesus suddenly held Peter’s hand and prevented him from drowning; He came through for Peter when He sent the angel to rescue him from the prison cells. You may read the fascinating report of Peter’s rescue as it is recorded in Acts, Chapter 12. Can you think of a time in your life when you felt helpless and God came through for you, and suddenly your fear, worry and doubt disappeared? 

God is a God of suddenlys and he is waiting for you to relinquish your title of self-will and flesh, so He can rescue you from fear, worry and your doubt. He wants to transform your weaknesses into His likeness. So the next time you are tempted to entertain fear , worry, or doubt, remember the promises of God, have faith, hope and trust in Jesus and the working of the Holy Spirit, then, stand firm and wait for the salvation of the Lord, because:

It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD (Lamentations 3:26).

Dear heavenly Father, I thank You for all Your promises. Please help us to demolish fear, worry and doubt, die to our flesh and allow Your Holy Spirit to lead, guide and direct our every thought and action, in the name of Jesus-Amen.

Excerpt from The Little Book of Peace By Pauline Lewinson