A Perspective on Fear

This blog is designed to give people an inner look at a devotional life. Taking time each day to spend time with the Lord. The hope is if you travel on this journey with Rev. Jacob Shaw, you may be more inclined to spend time with the Lord as well. I encourage the use of a devotional, a scripture reading and prayer, then finally a song, hymn or selection of poetry to tie it all together. 

Today's devotional is taken from: Vujicic, Nick. Limitless Devotions for a Ridiculously Good Life. Colorado Springs, CO: Waterbrook Press, 2013. pp 118-120.

Opening Thought: There is the old expression that “sex sells”, this is true, but what works better is FEAR. People have always spun fear to control other people, you can see it throughout history, but even look close to home. The product industry always paints pictures of how horrible your life will be without their products; how much beautiful you will miss out on if you don’t dress or mark up your face the way they promote. A hope for beauty is just a fear of ugliness in disguise. Lobby and opinion groups will paint others as monsters and horrible labels as ‘bigot, lib-tard, Nazis, snowflakes, racists.’ These slanders will come from any side of an issue, trying to make those in the middle fearful to join one side or the other and forever be labelled so horribly. Politician and news media blow every issue into a frenzy because fear helps polls and ratings like nothing else. If you think the world is coming to an end, you’ll tune in for sure. Employers will use fear to motivate their employees, fear of being reprimanded or fear of being fired. Fear is a powerful tool.   

The devotional begins with: Luke 12:22-28

Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on. Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? If you then are not able to do the least, why ^[a]are you anxious for the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?

Second Thought: There is an old joke where a righteous rich man actually makes it into heaven, and when dies the angels come to take him to heaven, and because he was righteous the angels told him he could bring one earthly possession with him to heaven. The man had in his younger days crafted a gold bar from his first bit of fortune made in his youth, so he wanted to take that. When he got to heaven and the rich man greets St. Peter at the gate, St. Peter asked him, ‘what did you bring?’ The rich man held up his prize gold brick to show the saint. St. Peter looked puzzled and asked him, “why would you bring pavement?” [Ha-Ha, the streets are paved with gold reference here!]

We as creature in a physical world often forget of the true value of things. Even the necessities of life are frivolous in the grand comparison to the glory of God in heaven. So yes we need to take care of ourselves and our families, but if we get so stressed out about earthly things that we rob our spirit of calm and reassurance, then we are wasting the good time we have to enjoy God’s world in chaos and pain. Fear will drive this issue to new heights, if you fear too much the hypothetical results of life, you run the risk on never living at all.   

Continual Work: We all have stress, stress can be a positive motivator, like a little bell reminding you of the seriousness and value of a situation. However, we need to make sure that bell stays in check. If the ringing becomes louder than the worth of the cause, then we should seek help to parse through our stress and anxiety. As a follow up to our last post, counseling is a good resource, as is spiritual community and fellowship.

What Rev. Jacob is Working On: I have a new fear factor, which is being a parent. I stress every day about what to do to cultivate the best goodness for my son. I can only imagine how God feels, He’s got a lot more children. The stress I feel I know is a good sign, it reminds me I care. If my stress about caring for my son takes me to a point where I cannot care for him, i.e., I feel crippled by fear, then I will know something is not quite right and I need to get help. So far so good, but I will keep and eye on him and myself.    

Scripture time: 23^rd Psalm.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.

These words are often couple with a funeral, but the fear of death is similar to most fear, because it is situated around change and lack of control. If we feel reality is slipping from our comfort zone, in small mundane ways to large life changing ways, we’re are bound to be afraid and have anxiety. When people lose a family member we return to these words because it remind them that all these changes, no matter how big, are within the control and mind of God, and though it made be challenging to us now, in time and in God’s revelation to us, all will become clear, and therefore we do not need hold to fear, any more than what fear was designed for, to be a signal of something coming.   

Closing Words: I hope you enjoyed and were lifted by this devotional time; it is truly important to take time for God each day. By doing so, you welcome God into your life, and in turn you will be able to better see the world through the eyes of God, rather than God through the world's eyes.

Artistic Close:

Another Song today

Fear is a Liar (Zach Williams)

When he told you you're not good enough
When he told you you're not right
When he told you you're not strong enough
To put up a good fight
When he told you you're not worthy
When he told you you're not loved
When he told you you're not beautiful
You'll never be enough

Fear, he is a liar
He will take your breath
Stop you in your steps
Fear, he is a liar
He will rob your rest
Steal your happiness
Cast your fear in the fire
'Cause fear, he is a liar

When he told you were troubled
You'll forever be alone
When he told you you should run away
You'll never find a home
When he told you you were dirty
And you should be ashamed
When he told you you could be the one
That grace could never change

Oh, fear, he is a liar
He will take your breath
Stop you in your steps
Fear, he is a liar
He will rob your rest
Steal your happiness
Cast your fear in the fire
'Cause fear, he is a liar

Let your fire fall and cast out all my fears
Let your fire fall, your love is all I feel
Let your fire fall and cast out all my fears
Let your fire fall, your love is all I feel
Let your fire fall and cast out all my fears
Let your fire fall, your love is all I feel
Oh, let your fire fall and cast out all my fears
Let your fire fall, your love is all I feel

Oh, fear, he is a liar
He will take your breath
Stop you in your steps
Fear, he is a liar
He will rob your rest
Steal your happiness
Cast your fear in the fire
'Cause fear, he is a liar

'Cause fear, he is a liar