All one has to do these days is turn on the television and the word terror is flashing across the screen. people who just enjoy killing for the sake of killing are on the loose. It does not matter who you are or where you come from; you are affected.
Fear is gripping this country in a way that no generation has ever experienced. Many are afraid to go out at night, to stand in a mall parking lot, to pump gas at a gas station, and the list goes on. What was once a reasonably safe place to live has become a virtual war zone.
Fear and Terror
So, how do you cope with today's way of life? I believe we need to begin by understanding what the word fear means. It is probably best illustrated in Webster's dictionary: "a painful emotion excited by an expectation of evil. It is an uneasiness of mind upon the thought of future evil. It is anxiety and timidity."
The synonym for fear is horror, alarm, panic and dread. Sheila Walsh put it so well when she said that fear is a "strange wind. It is not a wind that propels us forward, but a wild, paralyzing one that puts us in a holding pattern" ("Living Fearlessly," Sheila Walsh).
Many today have put their lives in this holding pattern because of what the future may or may not hold. Many have become paralyzed by the word terror and have changed the very way they maintain their everyday life. It is as if many are walking a tight rope in life and have become paralyzed, unable to take the next step.
Two weeks after the September 11 terror attack, I was scheduled to fly to Michigan. As I sat in my seat that morning, I could feel the terror in many of the passengers seated around me.
The atmosphere was intense as it seemed all were surveying the surroundings with a close eye. The plane was quiet and no one moved as we all listened intently to the instructions being given in case of an emergency. This is exactly what the enemy wanted—a people paralyzed by fear. Who is this enemy that we battle against?
The Word of God states that our enemy is the god of this world, the devil. If we look closely at the book of John, we see that Jesus says, "I am the Door; anyone who enters in through Me will be saved. He will come in and he will go out (freely), and will find pasture" (John 10:9 AMP).
It goes on to say this about our enemy: "The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. Jesus again assures us that: I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows]" (John 10:10 AMP).
The enemy's job is to steal your hope, your dreams, your vision. His whole purpose is to make certain that he kills your future, and more importantly, your future in eternity.
Overcoming Fear = Realizing the Fullness of God
If he can grip you with fear, paralyzing you, you will never reach the fullness of all God has for you here on earth. I can remember times in my life when I have been gripped with fear.
Two years ago, my husband and I had the privilege of ministering in China. While there, we desired to visit the spot where the school we were donating money to would be built. This meant we would have to go from our rather secure location in the city to a mountain near the Vietnam border.
We arrived at the small village town and boarded a pickup truck. As we journeyed up the mountainside, I could feel the sway of the pickup as it slid from side to side in the mud making its way higher and higher. I gazed out the truck window and felt my heart move into my throat as I looked straight down the mountainside. I became paralyzed with fear.
I began to pray, "Lord, this could be my last breath. Forgive me of my sins. I commend my life into your hands." At the same time, I knew that I had to overcome this fear. The enemy wanted to rob me of seeing the faces of many children overwhelmed with joy at the prospect of having a new school.
He also wanted me to fear death. I began to face the fear boldly. I looked fear in the eye and realized then that my life was in God's hand and that I could trust Him with the vision He had placed before me. Praise God, we arrived safely on the top of the mountain. God had prevailed in my life once again.
The Promise of the Word
You see, the Bible says in 2 Timothy that "God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but (He has given us a spirit) of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control" (2 Tim. 1:7 AMP). We can see that fear does not come from God, and if not, it must come from our enemy.
As your understanding of fear becomes clearer, you can more readily see that the enemy of this world wants precisely the opposite of what God has purposed for your life.
John 10:10b says that Jesus came to give us life abundantly. The word abundantly (Greek) means "exceeding, overflows, more than is necessary, surplus, super abundance, superior in quality."
In other words, Jesus came that we might have life (Zoe - life on another level) excessively. Jesus came that we might walk not in fear, but in faith, believing that the same God who sent His only son to die for us, loves us, cares for us, and desires that we are never paralyzed by the fear of this world.
We can trust this God with our life and the lives of our loved ones. Why? Because Jeremiah 29:11 says,
For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.What a promise from His Word. He has a plan for each one of you. Your life is in His hands. As you make Him the Lord and Savior of your life, you can know for sure that He holds the future.
(Jer. 29:11)
You can embrace each day striving to live smart and cautiously in a fallen world, but you need not live out your days in fear. You can trust God with your life and your family's.
He holds your days in the palm of His hands. What an assurance this is to all of us in these days!
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Julaine Christensen is an author, psalmist, revivalist, and teacher, and she has spent her life serving the body of Christ as a "mother" to the church. The mission of her apostolic ministry has always been to equip sons and daughters to seek the Kingdom of God through worship, prayer, prophecy, and relationship with the Holy Spirit.
