~ Fear a sin…I don't think so ~

What is fear…really? Is everything about it really a sin? Would Jesus really tell me I was such a huge sinner and had such little faith if He were sitting with me and I expressed my fears. Would He say it is all from Satan…that it is a trap and a snare? Have we become so caught up in Fear being so not about God that we even have fear expressing the fact that we do have fear…for the simple fact that we will be judged? (I know a mouth full….just bear with me)  Judged for letting fear have power over us…letting this "sin" take hold of us. 

The big thing to say when fear is expressed is this…"Remember, fear is not from God." So, right in that moment…since it is not from God…it is either prayed over or put to silence. 

I'm starting to see and realize that in many ways this quick response to ones fear is in many ways an excuse…an avenue…a place in which we can escape the uncomfortable places of having to sit possibly longer with someone struggling with fear. Where we have to dig a little deeper as we help with this place that puts us in a paralyzed state of mind. So, why have we as a Christian community decided what WE WANT to decide about things that will cause us to be in longer moments with one another? The possibly of having to invest energy and time? 

Fear….what is it really?  Is it truly sin?  Or could it possibly just be a normal emotion and a part and place in us that God created. Simply put…He did create every part of us…even our emotions…even our fear. So then why do we so very quickly decide to put such condemnation on one another about this feeling…this emotion…this space that comes very naturally…FEAR. 

Even in the most innocent of settings…fear is there to warn us at times. To allow us to see danger coming. When we fear something or someone…there is usually a good reason that insight of fear has crept into our souls. A warning…a discerning message to get out…to not go further…to run. So, would we then call that a sin? I think not. 

I'm personally battling this word…Fear. I'm battling with it only because of the way the Church has decided to define it. Do I have fear? Yes. Do I believe it is a sin or a stronghold? I actually don't. I believe it is circumstantial and realistic for where I am in my life at this time. It is a very normal and true emotion(which God created)to just let me know my body, my mind, my surroundings are in a place that feel unsettled and scary. It is a very normal emotion to feel when certain things in life put us here. 

There are so many other cases in which I can see that a person would be overtaken by fear. I'l list some that are flooding my mind right now…..

Cancer

Hunger

Homeless

Divorce

Death

Asthma

Surgery

Abuse

Car Accidents

Terrorist Attacks

I could make a list things all day long. In everyone of these above crisis moments I would expect that any person would be overcome by FEAR. It is a normal response. I would never label their fear as a sin. Because our emotions were not created by Satan…they were created by our Father God. 

Bottom line for me is this…HE gets me. He understands my emotions. He sits with me in my fear. He does have ENOUGH time to walk through this journey of fear with me. 

I took a break and went to the scripture…the Bible…God's word. I pulled up the scripture that most would use to say that Fear is not of God. I personally believe this scripture has been taken and twisted to push away the responsibility of the Church from digging deep into fear instead of sitting still with those who are held in its tightness. Please don't see that word tightness as a trap…I don't mean it that way. I literally mean the word for what is sounds like and means…Tight. When I have fear…I literally feel like I'm being held tight. This doesn't mean I'm sinning horribly or I'm caught in sin…NO WAY…just means I'm very scared and I can't see a way out on my own. I need help…I need someone…yes, God…but we are called to be His hands and His feet. We have to learn to sit in these deep places with one another. 

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18).

If you take time to read the whole chapter and not just this verse you will see that it is talking about the love that we are to show to one another. It is all about LOVE. Yes, fear is not what God wants us wrapped up in and that is why He comes in with His perfect love and calms this place that does hold us tightly in its grip. But, it is so simple to see that He is instructing the body of Christ about LOVE. And love is time and time is love. And to put down fear we will have to give more than a prayer or the condemnation of quickly throwing out the sin word over this emotion created by God. 

In (Isaiah 41:10) it says, “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” 

Often we fear the future and what will become of us. But Jesus reminds us that God cares for the birds of the air, so how much more will He provide for His children? “So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:31). 

Just these few verses cover many different types of fear. God tells us not to be afraid of being alone, of being too weak, of not being heard, and of lacking physical necessities. He doesn't say they are a sin…He just gives us clarity that we don't have to feel this way. That through Him…through His love we have something much bigger to lean against. 

I'm reading back through my writing this morning and in some ways…in many ways I can hear my passion and frustration bleeding out onto this page. I'm ok with that. I am challenged to be different in the way in which I approach those who come to me and express their fear. I want to be more like how I know my Daddy Father would cradle me in this time…in this season.

I challenge you too. Let's be more about time and less about condemnation. Let's put aside the words that come so easy to throw out…Sin…This is from Satan. Let us be a church…a body that sits longer and goes deeper with one another. 

Amidst this day of fear unspoken…I sit closed in where no one will notice. Frozen up and untouched by the day...I find myself filling up this page. With words that pour out from my souls deep pits…I place a promise that I hope will fit. Into the lives that He places…inside my path exposing there spaces…of Fear unspoken yet all over them the traces…that inside these trapped places I sit with no timer set or words that condemn. Just love poured out onto their injured heart as long as is needed…with God's love it's treated. 

Many blessings dear friends

Becka