Fear: an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat (thanks Google).
At times fear can help us. When we become afraid, it's our body's way of telling us that something isn't right, that we aren't safe, that we need to get out. But more often than not, I think, we are more fearful of what might happen instead of what is actually happening.
But we don't like to use the word fear. It seems weak and helpless, and we are taught by today's society to be strong and independent and brave.
And so instead we use the trigger word "anxiety" in replacement of fear. It's more trendy. There are more books and podcasts about it. We'd rather be "anxious" than "afraid."
I wonder when the enemy started to cloak himself in this name instead of the name of fear. Because make no mistake, our fear or anxiety, whichever you want to call it, is egged on by the enemy. He only has a few tricks up his sleeve, but he will play them over and over and over again until we lose who we are.
For me (and probably a lot of people), I fear the future. Not even the future, really, but I fear not holding control of the future. I'm a control freak. There. I said it. You probably are too.
The future is uncertain, rarely predictable up to a certain distance past the present moment. And while I do fear a lack of control, I am under no false illusions that I actually have any whatsoever. Even before I committed my life to Jesus, I wasn't totally sure how it all worked. I don't think I've ever believed I was in control. Wouldn't that be a bad idea on the universe's part, to put little old me in control?
But God is sovereign; He holds all the power (Revelation 4:11). Which makes sense, because He created the universe and everything in it (Colossians 1:16-17). He was there before everything was nothing. He will continue to be there long after everything becomes nothing again. God is everlasting.
And if God is everlasting, which His Word says He is (Isaiah 40:28), then that means His knowledge is also everlasting. He knows everything: past, present, and future. The Bible also says that He knows every hair on my head (Matthew 10:30), that He catches every single one of my tears (Psalm 56:8). He's the one who knit my essence together (Psalm 139:13).
So if He truly knows everything about everything, and He truly knows my being so intimately, then of courses He knows what my future holds. Nothing has ever escaped His notice, and nothing ever will.
Which means that He notices my thoughts of "what if," even when I'm not bringing them directly to Him. So naturally, I should just take them straight to Him.
Because He can handle it. He can handle my doubt and my worry.
I am off the hook for holding and maintaining control. I don't have to deal with it, or worry about it or cling so tightly to it. I am free to move forward in faith, knowing that if God can hold the universe in His hands, then He can surely hold my little life. Should I daily choose to step into it, I can live fear-free. And you can too.