Invite Jesus to Heal Your Negative MindsetНамуна

Transform fear 

In the course of my medical work I meet many people who live in a constant state of fear and anxiety.  God did not mean us to live like this. So why does He allow us to be fearful?  

Fear is not bad in itself; it is just disordered. The good news is that with the help of Jesus we can transform fear into a tool to bring us closer to God. There are two stages:

Stage 1: transform the fears of this world into the fear of God. Do not fear for your possessions: Jesus had none. Do not fear for your reputation: Jesus cared nothing for his. He told us: “do not be afraid of those who can kill only the body . . . rather fear him who can destroy both body and soul in hell.”

Buy why would we fear God? When I first started reading the Bible this puzzled me. Wasn’t God supposed to be about love, rather than fear? Then I was taught the meaning of the words: “The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” The fear of God is where we start as beginners on the spiritual path. But this fear soon becomes a sense of awe at God’s power and majesty.  

If the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, what is the end of wisdom?  

Stage 2: the Apostle John tells us the answer: “perfect love drives out fear, because fear is about punishment.  If we still fear, we have not been perfected in love.”

We start by fearing God. But as we learn to put Jesus at the center of our lives, we come to experience God’s love. Jesus’ words to the Apostles can also apply to us: “no longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing.  But I call you friends, because all things I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you.”

So, when we find ourselves anxious or fearful, let us focus instead on God. Let us walk in nature and marvel at God’s handiwork. Let us pick up our Bibles and grow to love God’s Word. Let us sing praises to him. And let us pray always that he will transform our fear into love for him.