Fear Not!
“Quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death…
Go after a dream that is destined to fail, unless God intervenes…Start creating the future, stop playing it safe and start taking risks. Expand your horizons, accumulate experiences. Enjoy the journey ! Live like today is the first day and last day of your life. Quit holding out. Quit holding back. Quit running away.” ~Book mark from Liz
I sit here wondering how much I have let fear guide my life. The things that I have never done because I was simply afraid. The people I have never talked to and the places I have never been. Fear is the stunting point of all growth. And where fear hides, the love of the Lord is not present.
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made in perfect love.” ~1 John 4:18
The Bible talks so much about fear, yet still my feeble heart tries to hold on to this leech that keeps me from being more for the Kingdom of God.
Within the past couple days I have faced a few fears. Two days ago we went rafting together as a squad down the Nile river. The Nile river has some of the best rapids in the entire world with class V’s and VI’s. We had a blast, but at certain times I’m sure you could ask any one of us in the boat about our level of fear. The boat tipped and we all fell out a couple times. Some of us got pulled and held under the mighty rages of the water. The river was so mighty and had so much force! The 8 other girls and I that were in a boat together had an epic journey against a river that was raging in all of it’s glory. We had such an amazing time, and I must say we all fought a pretty fearsome battle.
“Strengthen the feeble hands, Steady the
knees that give way: say to those with fearful hearts. “Be strong, Do
not fear; your God will come.” ~Isaiah 35:3-4a
knees that give way: say to those with fearful hearts. “Be strong, Do
not fear; your God will come.” ~Isaiah 35:3-4a
The next morning I went bungee jumping! As I was walking up those stairs I was terrified. “Why the heck am I doing this?!” When I jumped I was even more terrified realizing that I had jumped to what seemed certain death. After that thought flashed through my head, however, all the fear left. I simply spread out my arms, completely overwhelmed by my new found ability to fly! It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, one that I would have missed if I had let fear rule.
“For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, DO NOT FEAR; I will help you.”
~Isaiah 41:13
After my bungee jumping experience, what else would I do but go kayaking on the Nile River? David and I had the most amazing experience of kayaking on the Nile River with our own personal guides. There were times yet again when i was upside down in the middle of the Nile with my kayak. There was only my paddle to turn my boat around and I felt that fear rising up again. But then once again the Lord in His faithfulness would take me by the right hand and tell me “Do not Fear Danielle, I will help you.”
These examples are all physical, but the majority of my fears are actually spiritual or mental. How much more important are these fears?
~I fear others judgments on what I say, do, and sometimes even think
~ I fear stepping out of the common mold, by not doing what everyone expects of me
~ I fear doing what God tells me to do sometimes
I have feared. I have feared, I have feared. I’m going to stop.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in
everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your
requests to God.” ~Colossians 4:6
everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your
requests to God.” ~Colossians 4:6
