Be Free from Fear

By Denise Lorenz

Do you have one or more fears in your life that are holding you back from doing something you need or want to do?  Do you feel like no one has ever experienced such strong fear before?  Does it seem that you have no choice but to allow your fear to control what you can do, where you can go, or even how much you are allowed to attempt?

 

“No Fear” may have been a popular brand of clothing, but it doesn’t describe how most of us live.  All of us have experienced fear, and many of us live our lives gripped or controlled by fear on many different levels.

 

There are so many scary aspects of life that we have come to accept fear as a normal and expected part of it.  But is that the kind of life that God intended for us to have?  Is it even possible to live a lifestyle marked by confidence and courage?  The author shows with examples that living a life of conquered fear is not only possible, with God it can be a slam-dunk.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Life Changer Press
• Release date: Nov 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781513074900

Denise Lorenz

Denise is a woman with a growing faith, a burning desire to pursue God's heart and a genuine love for mankind. She has spent several years as a businesswoman, raising her five children--both adoptive and biological, and inspiring and blessing many whose lives have touched hers. After many years of seeking to know Him better, God has revealed the worth of His love to her.

Book preview

What is There to be Afraid of?

We may experience shortages of many kinds—water, oil, and food to name a few.  But there is one shortage that will never happen. Things to be afraid of will always be in abundance.  From small things such as snakes, mice, spiders, and bugs to bigger things, this planet will always provide the opportunity to fear.

But God says, Fear not.  It has been said that we are told 365 times in the Bible not to fear, one for each day of the year.  That sounds good, but why would God tell us not to be afraid so many times?  Could it be because there are so many things to fear?  Or could it be because we are fearful by nature?  Or could it be for both reasons?

We are at the mercy of so many things that are beyond our control.  Death and destruction through natural disasters such as earthquakes, wild fires, hurricanes and/or tornadoes seem to be a constant source of news.  Then there is the seemingly endless list of man-caused disasters such as bombings, shootings, kidnappings, and war.  The goal of any terrorist is to instill terror, or great fear, into as many people as possible as often as possible.  As if we needed help with that.

We fear the unknown and the unfamiliar.  We fear change, sometimes even when it is a good change.  We fear loss of any and many kinds—loss of income, loss of possessions, loss of family or friends, and loss of our youth or health.  We fear heights and depths, closed spaces, open spaces, crowds, and being alone. 

Parenting isn’t for cowards either.  We fear our kids getting hurt, sick or even worse. We fear their failure in school, in sports, or in any activity they pursue.  We fear they will make wrong choices (as if we haven’t made any of our own).  We fear for their future.

We may fear that our government is doing too much, or not enough about any given topic.  We may fear new technology that we don’t understand.  We may fear what others think of us.

And the list goes on.

Fear is not just a modern-day issue.  It started in the Old Testament and has never gone away.

Romans 15:4 says, "For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."

The Message paraphrases the verse as, "even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it's written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next."

The book of Romans was written before there was a New Testament. So while we know the New Testament was written for us, we can also be sure that we can learn many things from the Old Testament.

We may avoid the Old Testament because we perceive it as Law knowing that we live under Grace.  We may avoid it because we think it’s boring and full of begats.  Or we can enjoy the richness found in its pages and apply the lessons learned from people whose lives have become, in part, an open book for us.

All of us fear something at some time.  But none of us have to live in the life-sucking grip of fear.  It is a good thing that courage is not the absence of fear, since if it was, there may be little to no courage in our lives.  Instead, it takes courage to face and overcome fear.

If God tells us not to fear, and He does, then there must be a way to not be afraid.  And there is. 

But before we look at how others overcame fear; there is one fear that is different from all other fears.  It is the fear that we should have.  It is the beginning of wisdom.

Chapter 2

The Fear of the Lord

It seems that as many times we are told to fear not; we are also told to Fear God or at least told that the fear of God is a good thing.  The seeming contradiction is not a problem with God, but rather a problem with the limitation of our language.

The author of Ecclesiastes begins with everything is meaningless but concludes his thoughts about life with the words:  Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole [duty] of man. (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

In the New Testament, Peter tells believers, Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king. (I Peter 2:17) 

In both passages, the word fear is also translated as respect, revere and honor.  Neither passage indicates that we should be afraid of God in the same way that we experience fear in other aspects of our life. 

God has intensely pursued a relationship with humans since the Garden of Eden.  But a relationship based on one person being afraid of another is not the type of relationship that God desires.  That would be a relationship of employee to boss, or commanded to commander.  Rather, God knows that a relationship based on respect, and honor is healthy and long-lasting.  It is free to grow into intimacy, trust, and love—the type of relationship that God is interested in having with each one of us.

Doing what God asks of us is always for our good.  When God tells us to fear Him, He knows that it will be the best way for us to have a relationship with Him.  He deserves reverence and honor, but He also promises blessing in our life if we recognize Who He is and how much He deserves our worship.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  (Psalm 111:10) Honoring God is a pre-requisite to understanding life.  The Message translates it as, The good life begins in the fear of God.

The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. (Psalm 19:9) The fear of the Lord is clean.  God is not a difficult, ugly, harsh, or slavish taskmaster.  A relationship with Him based on reverence and honor for Him is pure and clean. 

Our fear of Him is not temporary or the latest fad.  It lasts forever.  It is based on knowing a God who is true, reliable, righteous, and just.

The same passage in The Message