Thursday, October 27, 2011

Whom Shall I Fear Blog Hop

I am truly excited to be part of the My Paper Treehouse Whom Shall I Fear Blog Hop. This month we are focusing on the theme of Fear and we pray you find hope in the midst of any fear you may be experiencing. Join us as we showcase the talent the Lord has given us through projects that reflect what we know about God. The hop begins over at www.mypapertreehouse.blogspot.com, so if you just happened to find this blog, make sure to go on over there first. If you came from (Zeni's) blog, you are in the right place! Know that we are praying for you!

Before we can ask the question: "Whom shall I fear?", we must first define the word FEAR. According to Dictionary.com, Fear is "a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc. " It is interesting, though, that the original Webster's Dictionary (1828) defines fear as the following: 1. To feel a painful apprehension of some impending evil; to be afraid of; to consider or expect with emotions of alarm or solicitude. We fear the approach of an enemy or of a storm. We have reason to fear the punishment of our sins. When you contrast the end of the definition provided, you can tell that the reasons behind our fears have changed.


With that change has come great compromise and a HUGE loss of the reality of the greatest thing we should fear... GOD!
In both definitions it is clear that fear comes from an expectancy of danger, pain, or evil. All of the threats that we face on earth can potentially take our physical lives away, but they have absolutely no power over what will happen with our souls. Interestingly enough, more people are afraid of speaking in public than they are of dying... and the truth is that to die apart from Christ would bring destruction to both body and soul.

You see, we fear losing our jobs, our children, our homes... We fear the dark, or changes that come our way... We fear thieves, and guns, and accidents; yet we refuse to fear the Lord. The Bible says that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 9:10). I always wondered why this was true, until I came across the following verse: "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10:28) God is the ONLY ONE who can destroy both your body and your soul! What a scary thought!

In both definitions it is clear that fear comes from an expectancy of danger, pain, or evil. All of the threats that we face on earth can potentially take our physical lives away, but they have absolutely no power over what will happen with our souls. Interestingly enough, more people are afraid of speaking in public than they are of dying... and the truth is that to die apart from Christ would bring destruction to both body and soul.

How is it that we do not FEAR this reality?

To be honest I myself didn't Fear this reality, oh I was very much aware of it though. I knew in the back of my mind I needed to find the road back to Christ, but it was not easy there was always something holding me back. Yes I can say that part of it was me, but my Pastor's wife Sonia always says that the enemy knows that if you come back he will have no control over you. Two weeks ago our entire household of 5 was getting ready for church when 5 minutes before we are ready to walk out I begin to get stomach pains, I'm like no way I have to go to church it's like a need. No one in the house was fighting or making excuses not to go right then I decided who is more powerful, why am I afraid? Then I remembered Psalm 27:1
" 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? " My God is in control of my life and my family's life, we have to go back to Exodus and remember when Moses was talking to his people in Chapter 14:13 "Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

You see it's not easy standing firm because in life there are a lot of obstacles, but we need to remember the Fear of the Lord in both definitions, and ask yourself do I want to die without Christ in my life the answer is NO. Am I fearful of God? my answer is I respect that He is a powerful God, should I be afraid of what He can do. NO I am fearful of what my life would be without God. It is important that our relationship with God, through His son Jesus Christ, be solid. So that in the end we will have eternal life. So I will leave you with an excerpt of Exodus 14:13 "Do Not Be Afraid, Stand Firm"


For your next stop you have to hop on over to Tammy's Blog

Don't forget to leave a comment, I have $15 Gift Certificate for one blessed member. I will announce winner on Tuesday.



12 comments:

Marjolaine said...

I REALLY love your layout, it's so beautiful!

Vicki said...

Isn't it amazing how Satan works on Sunday mornings to keep us from getting to church. Glad you were able to pull on the scriptures for strength to defeat him..

transport7800@aol.com
http://mawmawsthoughts.blogspot.com

Scraping Miami said...

Love the layout and thanks for sharing

lindaplus3 said...

your layout is very pretty and thak you for sharing your words :) indaplusthree at yahoo dot com

Anonymous said...

what awesome reminder that when we are God's children, Satan has no control over us and if we drift, that God will always welcome us with open arms. Loving him gives us the courage to not be afraid!

many blessings,
Zeni

Becky Dunham said...

I love this layout - the neutral tones and that sepia picture just really speak to me. Thanks for your encouraging words.

rebeccadunham at hotmail dot com

Nana Campana said...

AMEN! AMEN! & AMEN! I am so blessed with the fact that you are back participating on these hops! May the Lord continue to uphold you and lift you up! :) Love u!

Nicole Brenna said...

Your layout is beautiful... thank you so much for your post. Have a blessed day!

HeARTworks said...

Indeed there are a multitude of things to fear and the devil is out on the prowl to maximize our "favorite" fear! He knows this distracts us from focusing on the Lord! Great layout! Patsy from
HeARTworks

Wendy Swenne said...

You've made a lovely layout. Thanks so much for sharing your word.


Wendy

Unknown said...

That is a beautiful LO, and a timely reminder to keep walking in the awe and respect of God.

Scrappin' Sista said...

Your layout is AMAZING!!! I love the picture and how you accented it. Your words are beautiful and full of truth. TFS and hopping with us.

Christel
http://onescrappinsista.blogspot.com