Overcoming Fear

Fear can be a bad thing but it can be a good thing to protect us from harm. Fearing crossing the street when cars and flying past is a good fear. But fear of man can paralyze us! Freedom is found through fearing God and not fearing man. What are you most afraid of? There are numerous phobias out there!

• Trichopathophobia - Fear of hair.
• Peladophobia - Fear of bald people.
• Melophobia - Fear of music.
• Lachanophobia - Fear of vegetables.
• Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia - Fear of long words (can you even pronounce that word?)
• Arachibutyrophobia - Fear of peanut butter getting stuck to the roof of your mouth.
• Unatractiphobia - Fear of ugly people.
• Dromophobia - Fear of crossing the road.
• Pogonophobia - Fear of beards.
• Linonophobia - Fear of string.
• Clowns - Coulrophobia

Do you relate to any of these crazy fears? The truth is, many people are held hostage by fear. We fear rejection probably more than any other fear. Sometimes we find our identity on what others say about us instead of our identity being found in Jesus.

The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. Proverbs 29:25

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.  2 Timothy 1:7

What Fear Does?

• It slows potential: Apathy sets in and you never take risks to step out because of fear of what others might say.
• It scars relationships: It leads to unhealthy dependence with others.
• It stops joy in our life: Cynical by finding problems in yourself and others.

How does the fear of God overcome the fear of man?

Our tendency is to usually care more about man’s opinion often times more than God’s opinion. The truth is, God loves us. We are called to be overcomers of the fear of what others think!  Jesus set the ultimate example of loving us through the cross! The fear of God destroys worry about what other people think. No matter what people say, we are accepted through Jesus! No matter if we are rejected by men, we are accepted by our Heavenly father!

I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.  Psalm 34:4

Where God’s love is, there is no fear, because God’s perfect love drives out fear.  1 John 4:18

Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. Ecclesiastes 12:13

We need to live for the Audience of One! I will be rejected by people.  You will, too, if you are following Christ.  The fear of man is a trap! You and I have an opportunity to cave into the fear of being accepted by people every day! God loves you so much that he wants to have a personal and meaningful relationship with you. Don’t allow the incredible potential of this journey to be sabotaged by fear. God wants you to be free of fear and filled with boldness.

Are you living your life to be accepted by men or for an Audience of One?

Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. Galatians 1:10

Jesus Never Stops Forgiving

Do you ever think you are too far gone for God's forgiveness? Do you think others are too far gone to be saved? Luke 23:39-45 is one of the best examples of repentance in scripture. It also demonstrates the awesome, saving power of God. This text is commonly held up as the example of how far a sinner can go and still be saved. The separation between God and man was destroyed through the cross and resurrection! The heart of this passage is that God will not reject a repentant sinner no matter what they have done. Let's look at each verse of Luke 23:39-45:

 "One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” (Luke 23:39). In those days, crucifixion was only reserved for the lowest of criminals. It was against Roman law to crucify Roman citizens. They were beheaded. Here in this verse we have a scenario where Jesus, the sinless One, crucified next to a lowly criminal. The criminal begins to mock and scoff at Jesus. The criminal taunts Jesus by saying, “if thou be Christ.” The word used here for “Christ” means “anointed one”. It is the proper name that was used for Jesus. The word, “save” means to deliver from danger. The criminal tempted Jesus to save himself along with the two other criminals.

 "But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” (Luke 23:40-41): The repentant criminal rebukes the unrepentant criminal for His blasphemous taunting of Jesus. The repentant criminal rebukes by asking the question, “Don’t you fear God,” His conscience bore witness to the fact that he was witnessing a great injustice. Here, the repentant criminal gives the reason for his rebuke. He confesses that he rightfully deserved their sentence of crucifixion.  That is that the repentant criminal recognized that he had done something wrong. It takes a heart of repentance to surrender to Christ. The criminal expresses his surprise at the unrepentant criminal’s actions because Jesus had done absolutely nothing deserving of execution. The word “justly” means honestly, justly, as it is fit, proper, or right.

 "Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom (Luke 23:42): In this verse the repentant criminal now addresses Jesus. His request is very simple. It was one of total dependence upon the mercy of Jesus. It was totally absent of any excuse or self-righteousness. The criminal addresses Jesus as, “Lord”. This word can mean master, owner, or possessor. He recognized Jesus for who He is, the Savior. The word here for “kingdom” refers to the kingdom of heaven.

"Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43): Jesus replies to the repentant criminal’s request in the previous verse. Jesus gives an extra assurance of His words by adding, “Verily, verily,” or “truly, truly.” Jesus then goes onto tell the repentant criminal that “today” he would be with Him in paradise. Note that it was today and not some future time. This passage verse teaches that believers are immediately ushered into heaven, into the presence of the Lord. The word for paradise refers to heaven.

 "It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two" (Luke 23:44-45): The time period in which Jesus was crucified was 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. A total of six hours. However, from 12:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. darkness fell over the whole earth. This verse does not just say in a particular area but over the earth. The word for earth here means the entire physical planet. This verse goes on to note that even the sun’s light was darkened. The veil of the temple was said to be about six inches thick. It divided the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple. There was no machine or device at that time that was capable of tearing that veil all the way from top to bottom. This was a clear act of God’s awesome power. Many commentators believe that this act meant that we not have direct access to God’s presence. No longer do we have to go through the Levitical priesthood as representatives for us. Now we can go straight to God if we trust in His son Jesus.

One of Jesus' last conversations was the forgiveness of a criminal. In comparison to God, we are all criminals. We have broken His heart through our sin and rebellion. We are broken, lost and in need of salvation.

Thank you Jesus for taking my place on the cross and for eternally forgiving me! 

Books I'm Reading

Reading. If you ask most people, reading is not on their priority list. Why? Because it takes a conscious effort to focus. We live in a distracted culture. I did not start out as an avid bookworm but over time I realize there is so much to learn and so little time! Outside of my time reading God's Word, I enjoy reading books on leadership, ministry, sports and spiritual growth. Now that I'm done with seminary, it is easy to become lazy and stop challenging myself to grow. My goal is to read one book at least per month.

"Ten years from now you will be the same person you are today, except for the places you go, the people you meet, and the books you read – Jay Strack, Student Leadership University

1.Come Thirsty by Max Lucado. (I am almost done with this book. Max Lucado is an encouraging writer that creatively expounds on God's Word. I would encourage you to read it!)

2. Jesus + Nothing = Everything by Tullian Tchividjian (I just started reading this book. My brother gave it to me for Christmas. I'm already challenged to understand that adding to the gospel is dangerous because it replaces truth with moralism. I'd encourage you to read this one!)

3. Tim Tebow: Through My Eyes (I'm almost done with the book. It is a great personal look at Tim's life and his dedication to God. I'm a Tebow fan (but a Seminole fan at heart!) and I'm thankful that he stands for the gospel despite all of the haters out there. It is a great inspirational book).

4. Dying to Live by Clayton King (I just purchased this book and am looking forward to reading it soon! Clayton is one of the leaders I look up to in my life. I'm grateful for his desire to be real and unashamedly preach the gospel).

5. God and Football by Chad Gibbs (My friend John let me borrow this book and I look forward to reading it).

6. The Hole in Our Gospel (I bought this book at Orange conference and have not read it yet. I know already it will challenge my understanding of revealing the gospel into a lost and broken world).

7. Quitter by Jon Acuff (It is on my "want" list. Dr. Reid told me this book is a must-read so I look forward to buying it soon!)

8. Rescuing Ambition by Dave Harvey (It is on my "want" list. Dr. Reid also endorsed this book as a must-read).

I'm still working on 9 and 10. Do you have any books to add? What are you reading? I'd like to know!

(p.s. I'm in the process of coming up with an outline for my first book or devotional...I'd appreciate any feedback on this endeavor).