Fear is an emotion induced by perceived danger or threat, which causes physiological changes and ultimately behavioral changes. These responses may include fleeing or hiding from perceived traumatic events or freezing—losing all ability to react in any way. An irrational fear is called a phobia.
Has fear ever caused your heart to pound, the blood to drain from your face, and your knees to knock?
Years ago, working night shift on a psychiatric unit, I heard a lady arguing loudly. Entering her room to see if I could be of assistance, she looked at me afraid and said, “He is right behind you, look!” I had no desire to turn around for fear I would witness her tormentor; instead I prayed, “Dear Lord, please remove whatever is troubling her.”
Fear can be paralyzing, altering our perception, causing loss of motor control and also insane thoughts, leading to depression and anxiety. There is so much in this world that fosters insecurity and apprehension that it is hard to know who and what is trustworthy.
If ever the world needed Jesus, it is now. Yet how many seek Him? How many realize that Jesus is the answer to all our fears?
“For God hath not given us the Spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18).
Consider one of God’s little creatures, the grasshopper mouse, which is fearless as can be. This critter lives in one of America’s hottest deserts, the Sonoran Desert, which is home to more venomous creatures than anywhere else in the U.S. This desert is no place for the fearful. With a height of 4.1 inches, what the mouse lacks in stature, it sure makes up for in attitude and courage. Displaying bravery against the odds, as night falls it emerges to track down deadly scorpions. Incredibly, the mouse is immune to the venom, and as it gets stung it shakes off the neurotoxins and converts it into a painkiller. Amazing!
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could brush off every sting we receive and convert it into a pain killer?
Grasshopper mice have an unusual way of staking claim to their territory and warning other creatures of their presence. Standing on their hind legs, they throw back their heads and howl, a mousy howl, at the night’s sky, like a miniature wolf.
If God gives a four-inch mouse the ability to survive in a hostile environment, can He not take care of you?
“But now thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and He that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine” (Isaiah 43:1).
“In reviewing our past history, having traveled over every step of advance to our present standing, I can say, Praise God! As I see what the Lord has wrought, I am filled with astonishment, and with confidence in Christ as leader. We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us, and His teaching in our past history.” Last Day Events, 72.
“And the Lord, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed” (Deuteronomy 31:8).
Stay close to Jesus by prayer, seek Him in His word, tell others of what Jesus has done for you. Your faith will increase, and your fear will disappear.