Fear and the ability to make the right choice.

Someone recently said to me that we are supposed to fear God. The scriptures do say that, but there are some important differences we need to be aware of. There is a big difference between reverential fear or awe of God’s majesty and glory and fear that produces terror! Those who don’t know God through Jesus Christ should be in terror for Hell awaits them. 

However, as Born-again believers in Jesus Christ, we are under the covering of God’s Grace, and we must be in a place of honoring Him. We are sons and daughters under the covenant of Grace, which was purchased by Jesus through His crucifixion, death, and resurrection.  

We should not be in terror of anyone or anything, for God is with us. I will admit that we may experience the emotion of fear, but fear should not dictate our actions. 

• An acronym for the word FEAR is False Evidence Appearing Real.

We are new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17) the old has passed away, and all things have become new. This means that we must begin to think differently and act differently. We change as we learn to be led by the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us.  

It all boils down to this- you must decide (make a choice) to follow Jesus. This means to do those things He wants us to do, and to avoid those things He doesn’t want us to do. It is all about the decisions you make in life. 

The issue of fear is genuine, but the problem is not with the emotion of fear, but how you respond to the fearful event! Do we act righteously or unrighteously?

It is important to decide before you face a crisis how you will act. The worst time to try and make a righteous decision is while you are in the crisis. So, you must decide before the temptation; I will not lie, I will not steal, I will not cheat, I will honor my parents, I will not covet, I will not commit murder. We must dwell on these things, for Satan wants to tempt you to do evil! In all ways and all circumstances, we must decide to honor the Lord God with our words and our actions!

What happens if you don’t make a decision because of fear?

1. If you don’t make a decision the devil will – Judas in the Gospels
2. If you don’t make a decision, others will – Golden calf and Aaron – Exodus 32
3. If you don’t make a decision situations and circumstances will – Nabal/Abigail – 1 Samuel 25

We were meant to have dominion.

Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 

• Never meant to be a “slave to the bondage of fear”; we can make a way out through the right decision. (Romans 8:14 above).

We are not called to be ruled by emotion but by our will!

• Billy Graham is probably the most well-known evangelist in this century, and his success is attributed to bringing people to the point of making the right decision!

• DL Moody had a 30-40% success rate; Charles Finney had a success rate of 60-70%… Finney would often say, “I don’t preach to their emotions; I preach to their will.
• We are called to exercise our will according to God’s Word, and if we do, we will find our way out of our unfavorable circumstances.

Decision is a choice. 

The Latin word for character is dokime,̄ and in the New Testamen,t it means to be tested. In Englis,h it is the word habit. Ttherefore your character is the sum total of all your habits. You have been teste,d and the result is good or bad. 

• It is not about what you intend to do, but what you actually do. Every person is a Legend in their own minds, but it is in the fires of trial and tribulation that the truth becomes evident, coming through as gold or dross.
• Samuel Smiles (late 1800’s)… sow a thought reap an action, sow an action reap a habit, sow a habit reap a character, sow a character reap a destiny! 
• Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. This is what God say,s and to see the fruit of i,t you must do it God’s way.

Rrepeated decision form habitss… you never make an unimportant decision because all decisions lead toforming  habits. The absence of a decision is a decision not to act! Those habits either build up or tear down your character.

God’sGgrace can break bondages, but God’sGgrace cannot make decisions for you.

1. So many people are waiting for God to do what God has told them to do! It is usually fear that holds them back, fear of failure, fear of consequence,s or fear of loss. 
2. God’sGgrace makes it available, but it is our decision to bring it to pass.

We are to become more like Jesus every day…

“Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 3:17-18.

The Difference Between Discouragement and Disappointment is HOPE!

Both disappointment and discouragement involve feelings down and low. discouragement is a CHOICE to stay in the pity hole. 

• Disappointment | the feeling of sadness or displeasure caused by the nonfulfillment of one’s hopes or expectations.
• Discouragement | loss of confidence or enthusiasm; to lose hope.

Discouragement differs from disappointment. 

When our expectations aren’t met, we feel disappointed. But discouragement, a feeling of despair and desperation, is a choice. We can choose to remain dejected or determine to work through our feelings and overcome them.

Recovering from Disappointment and Discouragement.

There is an excellent episode in David’s life found in 1 Samuel 30, that shows how David dealt with disappointment before it could turn into discouragement and depression. This happened before David became king.

David and his men were in the wilderness escaping from the wrath of King Saul, of Israel. King Saul  was threatened by the popularity of David. While David and his men were returning to Ziklag where their families were, the Amalekites attacked Ziklag, burned it to the ground, and took all the women and children captive.

When David and his men arrived at Ziklag and saw what had been done verse 4 says, 

• “Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep.” They were all disappointed and distressed, as you can imagine. David’s men were so discouraged that they spoke of stoning David. Verse 6, “Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.”

Did you catch what David did? He “strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” That is step number one.

When we become disappointed or discouraged, we must do the same as David, “strengthen ourselves in the Lord our God!” We strengthen ourselves by taking every thought captive; if those thoughts don’t line up with what God has said about us, we must discard them and not dwell on those kinds of ideas. Thoughts of fear, anxiety, defeat, hopelessness. Those kinds of thoughts are from the enemy of our soul, Satan!

• James 4:7, “Therefore submit to God. Resist (push against) the devil and he will flee from you.”
• Ephesians 6:13, “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

The second thing we must do is go to the Lord and direction from Him. God knows the plans He has for you to prosper you and bless you. Those are the thoughts we must embrace, even when our emotions cause us to despair. 

• Verse 8, “So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.” 

David encouraged his men, and they pursued the Amalekites. They found the Amalekites and destroyed them, recovering their wives and children without any harm to them. As a bonus for their faithfulness to believe God, they plundered the Amalekites of their treasure.

I encourage you to read all of 1 Samuel 30 for more in-depth insights that the Lord may give you, and keep in mind: 

1. Disappointment is Universal.  Almost everyone has been disappointed at one time or another.
2. Disappointment is Recurring. You may overcome disappointment one week, only to face it again the next.
3. Disappointment is Contagious.  Watch out for those who want to pull you down by indulging in negativity and self-pity.
4. Disappointment is Unpredictable. You never know when it will strike you or a loved one.
5. Disappointment is Temporary. It will pass if you respond correctly.

Don’t allow disappointment, which is an unfulfilled hope or expectation to turn into discouragement, which is a loss of hope. Take control of the kinds of thoughts you choose to focus on. Focus on Jesus the lover of your soul!

Meditate on the following verse as you face life this week, Psalms 31:24, “Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.”

In closing keep in mind the battle begins in the spiritual realm, the victory in the spirit will manifest in the physical realm:

• Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 
• 2 Corinthians 10:4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,

Activate your faith… Speak to your situation!

Mark 11:22-24 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God.  23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.