What about overcoming fear? Have you ever been overcome by fear that prevented you from doing something or going someplace? If you have, you are not alone. How do we overcome unhealthy fears that control our life? This is what we want to explore today.
Ten of the Israelite Spies were Filled with Fear
Moses sent twelve spies into the promised land to explore it for forty days and bring back a report. What would they find? Soon the spies returned with their findings. They reported to the whole community what they had seen and showed them the fruit they had taken from the land.
Numbers 13:27 This was their report to Moses: “We entered the land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country—a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produces. 28 But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak! 9 The Amalekites live in the Negev, and the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country. The Canaanites live along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and along the Jordan Valley.”[1]
We are Often Fearful when We Focus on Our Own Strength
The spies had seen miracle after miracle as the Lord led the Israelites out of Egypt. They saw how the Nile turned to blood, the plague of darkness and many other miracles God did so the Egyptian Pharaoh would let them go. When the Egyptians decided to pursue them, the Lord parted the Red Sea so they could escape. As the Egyptians tried to follow them through the Red Sea the Lord let the water collapse to destroy them. All of these miracles demonstrated they could trust the Lord when the odds seemed to be stacked against them. When they were fearful of those in the promised land it was because they relied on their own strength and not the Lord’s.
When You are Fearful, Begin to Think about What God could do and Pray for Wisdom.
One help in overcoming fear is mediating on Scripture. A good verse such is Isaiah 41:10Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. 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. [2]
As we look to the Lord and His power, He will walk with us to overcome the fears that are before us. To hear more about overcoming fear, listen here: https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/seeking-the-lord-changes-my-life-caleb
[1-2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation . Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.