High spirits have been quite difficult to maintain in this season of a major global pandemic. Fear is at an all-time high and decisions are directed by our anxiety and ‘what other people are doing’, causing us to make poor choices – en masse! And the media has become a megaphone for our distress. Against the sad backdrop, a clarifying mood is setting in. With everything upended, as Christians, we are left to deeply evaluate our walk with God.
Some of us know all too well what it feels like to look fear in the eyes, and with everything left, want to run in the opposite direction. Up against us are demons of fear that are after our minds, trying to navigate through a world that continually tells us faith is silly; that trusting the unseen is foolish, that the truths from the Bible are fairy tales, that God isn’t real.
I pray the Spirit of God will use this message to strike a chord in the hearts of the men and women whose only way of survival, in this unprecedented time, is to go through life physically drained, psychologically pressed, emotionally stressed and spiritually deflated.
It’s one I write for myself too – an exhortation to entrust an unknown future to a known God. That in this world, I will certainly encounter challenges, setbacks, and opposition at some point in my life is without a doubt; but that when these challenges occur, then my hope doesn’t depend on the fickle sways of circumstances, but on the solid rock called God.
The Christian life is not a life of clear sailing. There are moments when I’ve been left wondering how to apply my Christianity when the rubber hits the road; and I’m faced with life’s cold, hard realities that breed fear in my heart. Christians who have been persecuted have even more pressing reminders of this reality. They don’t just pay lip service to passages, they live out the truth of the gospel.
The truth is, even prior to this age of global pandemic, we lived in a very fearful age – now more than ever, an age where fear is the driving force in the decisions, attitudes and ideas that people cling to. The coronavirus has created widespread fear. Uncertainty about the nature of the virus, fuelled by huge doses of daily information, has created increasing alarm.
Paul’s experiences in Macedonia can serve to teach us quite valuable lessons – the apostle is hit with a bad day while travelling in Macedonia. He says that as soon as they were in Macedonia, their flesh had no rest. They were troubled on every side; “without were fightings, within were fears“ (2 Corinthians 7:5). He confesses that his inner man was plagued not just by one fear, but by many fears!
Like you and I, Paul was no exemption to these ‘valley’ experiences! We see him subjected to the same human emotions you and I face today. At one point, all the believers in Asia Manor turned against him; people he’d sacrificed his life force for. He writes, “…the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved” (2 Corinthians 12:15).
I think we can derive confidence in the fact that, even though Paul had awful days, he never gave in to his feelings and the temptations that accompanied them. He testifies in his worst time: “...I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation” (2 Corinthians 7:4). Then he adds “…God…comforts those that are cast down…” (2 Corinthians 7:6).
Paul states, “The Lord is never closer to you, never more ready to help you, than when you’re down and hurting.” Isn’t it an amazing thing?! When we experience bad days, our heavenly father takes advantage of them to draw us close to Himself!
When we go through valleys of life, we often pray and seek God more intensely than at other times. My greatest times of growth have been when I’ve reached the end of my tether, and all I have left is Jesus. I’ve come to understand how God uses suffering to make me rely on His presence.
When fear seizes you, all your ability to think rationally evaporates. Life appears overwhelming, and the promises of God are thrown out the window. When Moses sent the spies into Canaan to gather information for the people of Israel, fear of the looming giants became much more visible than any of the blessings Canaan had to offer. (Numbers 13) Although they obediently gathered fruit from the land, their report focused on all the seemingly impossible obstacles they faced.
Fear is that cowardice which in the last resort chooses self and safety before Christ. It causes you to reject Christ and can eventually cost you salvation if not addressed. Courage to face your greatest fears will not come from your self-confidence, but confidence in God’s powerful promises to act on your behalf. A coward puts his perceived self-interests above the wishes of his sovereign. Our sovereign is God. The fear becomes what you bow down to rather than God.
I still face situations in life that exposes a deeper struggle with fear. Sometimes when I look down the road, I still see potential disasters hemming me in like the children of Israel. Importantly, through each of these encounters, God has patiently been conditioning me not to doubt His love and His faithfulness to provide a way out.
Whenever things get too bad, I’m always reminded that the most common command in the Bible is, “Fear not.” My prayer is that Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith, will heal my doubts and fears through the gift of faith and trusting in him completely.
So, as we draw to the end of this article, I would like to encourage you to remember that Jesus endured the cross because He knew what was waiting on the other side of it.
In your day to day life, you are going to have to endure some stuff, and you’re going to be faced with some tough choices. Whether you’re hit by an unexpected circumstance, suffering for doing something wrong or for resisting temptation and sin by doing what’s right, you’ll find yourself going through stuff.
Maybe the future holds the worst setbacks life will ever throw your way; but rest in the knowledge that God has placed in your heart the best weapon there is; the belief that you will not only go through dreadful times but that with God by your side, you can pull through anything!
I’ve come to understand that the relationship between faith and fear is like a seesaw. When one is up, the other is down. So when you allow fear to rise, your faith will decline. But the opposite is true as well.
Perhaps, you’ve been looking at your present experiences through your perspective. God wants you to come up higher to where He is so that you can view the things that make you feel small and weak the way He does.
Maybe the source of your weakness and fear isn’t the same as mine. That’s okay, it doesn’t make your weakness and fears any less valid to God. God’s Word is the same for my situation, as it is for yours, as it is for the next person. Only He can enable you to leap over walls and breakthrough mountains. Through His strength, you will do mighty exploits! (Psalm 18:29 and 2 Samuel 22:30)
In the middle of this strange and worrying time, there’s a genuine opportunity. Take a moment and write down the fears you are currently struggling with; place it in an envelope and on the outside, write, “Fear Not! God’s got these covered!”
Does God have your best interests at heart? Jeremiah 29:11 says, Yes! “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.” As the old saying goes, this is straight from the horse’s mouth; the Alpha and Omega Himself. Shalom!
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Exhortation by George Oduor