Boo!

Boo!

John 14:27 NKJV
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

   Halloween time is a celebration based on many things, and one of them is fear.  People who celebrate Halloween like to be scared, and scaring each other is part of the fun.  Kids shout “Trick or Treat” and dress in costumes that are often scary characters and monsters.  What is about fear that makes it so much fun?
   The truth is that Halloween is only fun because we know it’s really not real.  We open the door and smile and pretend to be afraid when the kid there says “boo!” and give them some candy.  We know it’s really not real so it’s not really scary.
   This week I was studying about fear, real fear, because our world is awash in fear more than at any other time I can remember.  The fears facing our world today real and are really scary.  My study showed me many types of fear, and as I traced fear throughout the Bible I found myself back in Eden.
   In the very first encounter between Satan and Eve he suggests that God has not told them everything about the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil because He was afraid they would become like Him, suggesting that God was fearful.  This brought fear to Adam and Eve thinking that God was holding out on them.  The devil began using fear then and it’s still his best weapon against us.
   Fear cripples people are surely as wrapping them in chains and imprisoning them.  A fearful person can find themselves unable to function in society.  These fears fall into categories, and this is not necessarily a complete list, but three categories are worry about personal needs, worry about others, and worry about the future.
   Many become fearful about personal comfort or fear of having a place to live or having enough food.  Some, who have enough for comfort, are fearful about not having as much as someone else.  The devil uses this fear a lot and even tried it on Jesus when tempting Him in the wilderness, offering Jesus food as his first temptation.  We read the news and see this fear has gripped our society.
   Many become fearful about others.  They fear personal safety and shy away from others to avoid being hurt.  Some fear physical pain and some fear emotional pain.  Both fears can prevent people from living fruitful lives.  I always think of an elderly man my parents knew who barricading himself in his home and rarely went out because he was afraid of becoming sick if he came in contact with anyone else.  He had a neighborhood market deliver his food to his kitchen door and he would wash the cans and packages before opening them.
   Many fear being failures and not achieving success.  As I’m writing this I’m thinking back on the surprising number of co-workers over the years who came to work every day fearful of being fired.  Most were good workers and had no reason to think they were in danger of losing their jobs but lived with the fear every day.  One man actually talked about how bad things would be for his wife and new son when, not if but when he lost his job.  How terrible it must have been to live like that!
   I can’t remember how many people I’ve known over the years who dreamed of becoming rich and famous and successful.  And they lived with the fear of never fulfilling their dreams.
   Does fear grip at your heart?  Do you live with the weight of fear on your mind?  There is only one solution to fear, and it’s not in the psychologist’s office.  Fear needs to be brought to the foot of the cross.  We need to confess our fear to God and ask Him for healing.  Only in His love can we find deliverance from fear.  I think it’s safe to say all of us suffer from fear in some form, and trying to live without fear would be like trying to live without having clouds in the sky.  The enemy will bring fear to your door and will throw it in your face every chance he gets.  But your reaction to fear will determine how successful his attacks will be.  You do not have to live a crippled life.  Your weakness is made strong in Christ.  When fear comes on you, stop right then and right there and pray.  I don’t know how He does it, but God will give you the strength to pass beyond your fear and live life free of its power.

Stephen Cram                            October 23, 2011                                Colossians 2:8

Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.  Colossians 2:8