Fear, Part 1

January 12, 2023

Melissa Valerio

What are you most afraid of? What fear keeps you up at night? Fear of the unknown? Fear of not having enough money this month? Fear of dying? Fear of losing a loved one to a sickness? Fear of being alone? These are all valid fears. But is fear a choice? Well, if you look at your physical circumstances through the lens of the world, then I’d say no, fear is not a choice but rather a natural human reaction. However, if you look at your physical circumstances through the eyes of heaven, then yes, fear most certainly is a choice, and one that you never have to pick.  

There are two types of fear. Holy fear and earthly fear. Holy fear is the fear of God. It’s not necessarily a fear of God’s punishment or fear of God bringing His wrath on you, but an acknowledgement of His power and authority. It’s holy respect, awe, and submission to His sovereignty (ultimate control of everything). Understanding who God is will help in alleviating earthly fears. Earthly fear is the heart’s objection to perceived negative changes in our lives. Extreme objection leads to extreme fear. Wouldn’t you agree most of us are creatures of comfort? So, any possibility of negative change in our lives puts us on edge. We don’t want to lose what we’re used to and what we like. We don’t want to lose what we have or people we love. All these would bring (perceived) negative changes in our lives and cause us to rewire our lives to these new circumstances that we’re not comfortable with.  

The Bible has something very profound to say about these types of fears. One is in Isaiah 43: 1-2, “Now this is what the Lord says – the one who created you, Jacob (insert your name here instead), and the one who formed you, Israel (insert your name here) ‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are mine. I will be with you when you pass through the waters, and when you pass through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. You will not be scorched when you walk through the fire, and the flame will not burn you.’” (HCSB) These promises are for us, just like they were for the Israelites in the Old Testament. Let’s work backwards with the promises… 

1) When you pass through the waters, I will be with you    

2) When you pass through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you   

3) When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched or burned  

The “waters”, “rivers”, and “fire” in this bible passage all symbolize trials and hardships in our lives. The storm in your life could be impending job loss. Or it could be a child addicted to drugs. Maybe it’s a broken relationship that’s causing a lot of pain. Insert any stressful thing you’re going through. That’s your “water, river, or fire”. Notice God is not promising a life without trouble, pain, or storms. He has never said “Come to Me, and I will make your life easy and trouble free.” In fact, John 16:33 promises we will have troubles. It reads “I have told you these things so that in Me you will have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world!” (HCSB) Jesus said we will absolutely have suffering in this world, but the promise of God in Isaiah 43:2 says that He will be with us through ALL of those sufferings AND that it will not consume us. Why? Because He is responsible for our well-being. See, He Himself says so in the first part of the verse. He’s saying, “You are mine, I have called you by name and I have redeemed you (bought you with my blood), so therefore, you do not need to be afraid of anything. Because YOU BELONG TO ME, I will protect you and take care of you.”  

We understand this concept in parenting, right? Our children are our responsibility. We care for them, provide them with food, water, clothes, shelter. We love them, teach them, and nurture them. It’s the same concept with the Lord. He is our Heavenly Father. He may be invisible, but He is no less a provider and nurturer than we are to our children. And because we are children of God (if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior), our value becomes immeasurable.  

In the next post, we’ll talk about why we don’t have to fear. Because believe it or not, it is a choice.  

Prayer: Heavenly Father, Your word is so rich in truth and wisdom. Thank You for revealing so much about Yourself to us AND so much about ourselves to us. In Your son, Jesus, we discover our value and identity. In Him, we discover that we are Your very own, Your chosen children, and that we belong to You. That makes us very important to You and Your Kingdom. Thank You for redeeming us and making us Your very own. We can’t fathom the depths of Your love. Thank You for pouring it out on us. Help us to believe who You say we are. In Jesus’ holy name, Amen.  

Action: Read Isaiah 43: 1-7. Notice the great lengths God goes to show us how much He loves us. Remember that if anyone walks away from this relationship, it’s always us, never Him. Yet with each time we stray, see how much He gives up in order to retrieve us and bring us back to Him.