I’ve spent the last 6
weeks praying and asking God to place one word on my heart…
A
word that He would help me unpack, piece by piece, throughout the next twelve months.
A word that would change me and,
of utmost importance, bring glory to Him.
To be honest, I was
hoping for JOY or Worship or
PRAISE.
Anything but… wait for it…
Fearless.
Doesn’t He know my fears are v.a.l.i.d.?!
God has already taught me a bucket-load about casting my fears upon Him.
But I have so much more to learn... Fear
has been my life-long buddy. My earliest
memories are of things and people that made me shake with fear. I have feared
being rejected, being misunderstood, the loss of income, and worsening
health issues... Oh, I could go on and on!
Time and again, God has
been so consistently faithful to keep His promises, and yet,
at times, I still
find my chest tightening at the thought of ‘what will happen next’.
Isn't it amazing how much power we allow the voice of fear? It sometimes whispers to us
in the middle of the night. It sometimes screams at us in the shower.
What does fear say to
you?
Sometimes:
Fear says God won’t help you this time.
Fear says your
child won’t find his way back to the Lord.
Fear says your
finances won’t improve.
Fear says your
husband won’t ever change.
Fear says you
won’t be able to raise godly children.
Fear says you’re
not a ‘good enough’ mom.
Fear
says you'll always be alone.
Do you allow your fear to have
a louder voice than God's word?
When you're paralyzed with fear that you'll
make the wrong decision, God says:
make the wrong decision, God says:
“Don’t be afraid, for I
am with you.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and
help you.
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”
I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10 (NLT)
When you fear you're failing as a mom, God says:
“For I am the LORD, your
God,
who takes hold of your right
hand and says to you,
hand and says to you,
do not fear; I will
help you.”
Isaiah 41:13
Isaiah 41:13
When you fear being rejected, God says:
“Fear not, for I have
redeemed you:
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.”
Isaiah 43:1
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.”
Isaiah 43:1
When life seems so scary, God says:
“The Lord is my light and
my salvation—whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
The Lord protects me from danger—so why should I tremble?”
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
The Lord protects me from danger—so why should I tremble?”
Psalm 27:1
Faith believes God's promises are true, and fear says He's a liar.
Lord, help us to believe.
Faith believes God's promises are true, and fear says He's a liar.
Lord, help us to believe.
Living
in His grace,
Mary
How do you handle fear?
I'd love to hear how God is helping
you to become
Fearless!
Please leave a comment!
Thanks to Melanie at Only a Breath for creating this fabulous 'Fearless' button!
I can certainly relate Mar,y more in the area of anxiety (similar?.)When I am anxious about something or someone, I get caught up into my own thoughts, and let anxiety wrap me up in myself! God put the word "Content" on my heart this year; to be content in all things. When I am faithful and turn my worries into heartfelt prayer, I begin to experience peace knowing that God is truly in control. :) :)
ReplyDeleteBlessings and love for a year of no fear friend!
Denise
Denise, I love that God knows just what we each need... I pray that in your journey of turning your anxiety over to Him, He will calm your mind and you'll know a rest and contentment that brings peace to you and glory to His name.
DeleteThank you for coming by!
Blessings and contentment to you ~ Mary
can't wait to see how God will walk you through 2013; I love it!
ReplyDeleteBarb, I'm sure He'll have a lot to show me this year! I look forward to a richer, deeper faith and intimacy with Him.
DeleteI'm so glad you came by today!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
Somehow or another, faith is connected to fear. Where there is more fear, there is less faith--not the professing kind, or the understanding kind, or the biblically grounded kind, the the KNOWING kind of faith, the kind that abides through doubts and storms. That is the kind I want and, apparently, you too. The hard part is that we never know whether we have it or not until the hard times come. So, if we want faith to trump fear, I guess we are asking for fearful situations to beset us, so that we can walk through them with confidence in the company of our God. But if we can, then the situation is, well, OK. Go figure.
ReplyDeleteMrs.P, as usual, you've said this so beautifully. The 'knowing' faith that abides through the storms is exactly the faith relationship I want. I'm so thankful to be held up with His victorious right hand... whom shall I fear?!
DeleteThanks for your wise words!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
Today in my quiet time, God revealed to me places in my heart where I still fear. And as much as I know that this means it is time to face them, address them, and overcome them with His help, I'm still shaking in my boots. Love that we can journey through our fears together.
ReplyDeleteJen, facing our fears can be terrifying. It encourages me to know that He knows our doubts and fears, and by His Spirit, will strengthen us and help us to KNOW His promises are for us. Let's hold on tightly to Isaiah 41:10! This should be an interesting journey!
DeleteThanks for coming by and leaving a comment...I really appreciate it.
Blessings to you, my friend ~ Mary
I have been a child of God for many, many years and yet I struggle with fear. I have read the first chapter of the book 'Finally Free' and it really touched my heart, just as your message has done. God has helped me thru so much during my life it is hard to understand why I still have the 'fear demon' with me. I recognize it and I know God is still working on me and with me, I am thankful that I will have victory thru Him..Thank You Lord.
ReplyDeleteMary, I appreciate that, even though you've been through so much, (and probably BECAUSE of what you been through) you continue to walk closely with Him. God addresses 'fear' so many times in the Bible because He knows life will give us abundant opportunity to doubt His word... which also means abundant opportunity to BELIEVE His word. I pray this year will be an amazing journey of faith for us!
DeleteBlessing to you ~ Mary
Fearless! Such a power word! What a different world we would all live in if we all faced life empowered the Conqueror of all our fears! Can't wait to read more as God uses this word in your life this year! Thanks for linking with UNITE today! ~ jen
ReplyDeleteJen, I'm sure my world will look VERY different as I allow Him to do this fearless/heart/faith work in me. Thanks so much for hosting UNITE! And thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment!
DeleteBlessings to you ~ Mary
Hi Mary! Dropping by from SDG Sisterhood link up! God has taught me how to conquer fear by bringing to my remembrance EVER SINGLE thing He's ever done for me, when fear tries to rear it's ugly head(works every time). Thanks so much for sharing...following you now!
ReplyDeleteMichell @Prowess and Pearls
http://www.prowessandpearls.blogspot.com
Michell, I love it! When we remember how He has so faithfully met our every need, it helps to crush the fear that relentlessly tries to steal our peace. Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to share and follow! I look forward to visiting!
DeleteBlessings to you ~ Mary
What a great word! I agree that it wouldn't leap out at me - but it could be so amazing! Fearless is a word of power. Thanks for sharing. Newest follower.
ReplyDeleteDonna, you're so right...it is a word of power! The One who conquered death is surely faithful to empower us to crush our fears...through relationship with Him. Thanks for coming by, commenting, and following!
DeleteBlessings to you ~ Mary
Wonderful post! Thank you so much. I have fear. Fear about being a mom and homeschooling. Your post has touched me. God bless you.
ReplyDeleteI think we moms tend to struggle with a boatload of fears. We're so afraid we're going to 'ruin' our children if we mess up. The thing is, we all mess up... We need to have the faith to believe that God's promises for our children are true and 'fear' is a liar.
DeleteBlessings and fearlessness to you ~ Mary
I use the word "quietness" to describe the fearlessness you talk about. My struggles in this regard are recorded in this poem: http://www.prayerclub.net/poets/nita-brainard/the-christians-life-and-work/737-worry-and-quietness.html
ReplyDeleteNita, thank you for sharing this beautiful poem. I love these lines:
Delete"Yet Worry often would pretend
That she’s my only faithful friend."
Quietness..."She doesn’t clamor to be heard,
But points me to the living Word."
I'll be bookmarking this!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
Dear Mary
ReplyDeleteI always admire someone who tackles fear head- on by not being fearful of telling others of that monster's presence. I have found that it is half the battle won.
Nice meeting you at WIP.
Blessings
Mia
Mia, you rightly term 'fear' as a monster. It can tear us apart and tear us away from believing the Conqueror of all lies. We have to be so awake to the Spirit and His word!
DeleteI'm so glad you made it by today.
Blessings to you ~ Mary
Fear has been a besetting sin in my life, but God is gracious and is growing me so much. One scripture that has helped me is the command to "take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ." I find when I do this, I'm forced to discard many of my potentially fearful thoughts because they just don't hold up under the scrutiny of Scripture.
ReplyDeleteI'm visiting today from Hungry for God and glad I did :)
Lori, I'm so thankful that God never gives up on us and continues to grow us. I'm glad you shared this scripture... Lassoing those runaway, full-of-fear thoughts and subjecting them to the truth of God's word is a potent remedy to that monster...fear.
DeleteThank you for coming by and taking the time to comment. I appreciate it!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
What a great word! Last year I purchased a poster with all the scripture verses of "fear not" in the Bible. It hangs on my wall to remind me of all those areas you highlighted.
ReplyDeleteLori, thanks for telling me about the 'fear not' poster. That's something I could really use... I'm going to search the net and find one today! I need all the visual reminders I can find!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you came by today!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
I've found the fear gets almost completely silent when we concentrate on Trust and learn to rest in His Peace; If we learn to PRAISE Him in ANY circumstance (homeless?? yes even that)then fear, worry or anything else like that really has no place. He is our Provision no matter what may come
ReplyDeleteTamara
http://hisperfectpromises.blogspot.com
Tamara, thank you for sharing this... a relationship of trust and praise will vanquish fear... any fear, for He is our provision. It makes me want to shout Hallelujah and it makes me want to fall on my face with a gratitude too great for words.
DeleteI'm glad you came by today!
Blessing to you ~ Mary
Fear and I are old friends!! Really thought 'fearless' was to be my word but He had other ideas. Apparently I need to TRUST first!
ReplyDeleteCarol
Carol, it seems we share the same friends! I look forward to seeing where God takes you with your Trust-Walk this year. (I pray that we both ditch the old friends!) Thanks so much for coming by and leaving a comment!
DeleteBlessings to you ~ Mary
This is a fabulous post on the One Word theme for this year. I loved what you shared. Even though, fear is not my word for this year, I could definitely identify with what you shared and find myself challenged to seek to rely more on God. He is faithful.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing over at WholeHearted Home this week.
Judith, Yes, He IS faithful! I'm SO thankful that He's patient with us when we allow those fears to have a voice... He is worthy of ALL trust!
DeleteI'm glad you came by and left a comment. I really appreciate WholeHearted Home! (loved last weeks choc.chip cake!) Thanks so much for hosting the link-up!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
Wow! This could have easily been my word in 2012. I struggled with a lot of fears that I felt were valid, until God showed me that my fears were unfounded if I truly trusted in Him. I pray God's Word will work through you to help you overcome your fears this year.
ReplyDeleteSheena, isn't it amazing how loud a voice we allow fear to have?! I'm thankful that God
Deletequashed your fears and enlarged your ability to trust Him. I loved your post this week on 'diving in'... it was such a great analogy to overcoming fear and trusting Him. Thanks so much for coming by and leaving a comment!
Blessings to you ~ Mary
Just thought I'd let you know that you have been featured over at WholeHearted Home today!!
ReplyDeleteJudith, thanks so much! I really appreciate it! And thanks for hosting the link ups... they're great!
DeleteOh, I loved this! I can relate, and was encouraged by it so much. I would love for you to post this at my link up party, so my readers can be encouraged as well! http://courtshipconnection.com/?p=3360
ReplyDeleteKathie, thanks for inviting me to link up! I look forward to getting to know you!
DeleteBlessings to you ~ Mary
{Blog address correction: http://courtshipconnection.com/blog/ }
In Bible study this past week, we discussed how satan has only one tool - doubt. And when we choose to take it up and run with it - he is full of joy. As we run, we add to it because we are doubting our Abba. In this state of doubt, we also distance ourselves from the faith and security in Him. I love how His family ties it all together through His Word. Isn't He awesome!!!!
ReplyDeleteOh yes Deby, He is awesome!! The very thought of making satan joyful because of doubting our Abba makes me feel sick. Thanks so much for sharing... this will stay with me.
DeleteI always appreciate your visits and your comments...
Blessings and love ~ Mary