FACING OUR FEARS
Isaiah 43:1-2
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze."
Twice over the last 25 years I have been hunting along the Missouri River, at the bottom of the beautiful Missouri River Breaks, when a snowstorm blew in. It was over 500 ft of evaluation change from where we were to where we needed to be. The deer hunting there was great in a snowstorm, but we had no choice, we had to quit hunting early and headed back toward camp.
It was a fearful time... the thought of heading up narrow, two rut roads, up the side of steep hills with deep valleys on either side... but we had no options. We had to get out of the bottom and the only way was up and out. So we faced our fear and we pushed through. It wasn't easy and it was scary, but we got out.
I recently read a small saying that inspired me; "Fear has two meanings, forget everything and run or face everything and rise"
These few words made me realize that fear, while it is a God given emotion, it doesn't have to control us. Fear can inspire us to greater heights in life, to push through whatever we come up against. It was exactly what we faced in the river breaks of South Dakota.
Fear can be an immobilizer or energizer, be our foe or our friend. What you do in the face of fear identifies its role in your life. Instead of being paralyzed, allow your fear to move you to trust your life to the Lord. Come to see the Lord as your only place of safety. He promises that He will not only be with you, but that He will also lead you through your frightening worries.
The next time you face a storm in life, remember God is bigger than any storm and He can get us through any storm because only He creates the storms.
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7
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