“For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”
Philippians 4:13 (NLT)
Jesus Christ tells us in John 10:10(NLT) that “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.” The thief that our blessed Lord and Savior references in this verse is the devil. In John 10:1, he provides a little more information about the tactics of the thief. He said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber!” The thief’s purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy the sheep. Because his motives are dastardly and evil, the thief doesn’t announce to the inside dwellers that he’s coming in. If he did that, they would prevent him from stealing, so he doesn’t use the front door. Sneaky and underhanded, he uses the back entrance and comes over the wall without the dwellers suspecting they are being robbed. There is no doubt that Jesus Christ is schooling us about satan and his tricks. Our blessed Lord wants us to be aware so that we will guard our hearts and minds, and not allow the enemy to steal the Word from us.
Like me, you probably know lots of people that are praying to God to receive the desires of their hearts. Many of us are, but we’re doing so with a lot of fear still hiding out in our hearts. We want newness but instead of welcoming it, we’re clinging to the old and familiar with dear life. We’re afraid of change. We’re afraid of failure, and we’re afraid of total surrender. We’re stuck in the “almost-and-maybe”, but praise, God, we don’t have to stay there.
Stop making excuses
Philippians 4:13 tells us that God has empowered us through our union with Jesus Christ, and we can do all things through him. We must remember the context or subject that God has inspired the Apostle Paul to write about in this verse. When he writes “All things”, God is referring to the commitments, assignments, efforts, work, and achievements that allow us to continue pursuing the things of His kingdom. He isn’t referring to those things that have nothing to do with our purpose. We can do all things that fully prepare and equip us to better walk in God’s love and live abundantly through Jesus Christ. These are the “all things” that you and I are empowered to do. But the truth is that many of us are not doing the “all things” and will not even attempt to do them. We’ve allowed fear to hinder our faith, and we’ve made a habit pattern of making excuses.
We make excuses to remain comfortable in our current mindset of fear. Contemplating any scenario outside our current circumstances can sometimes cause us to panic. We’ve grown very accustomed to swatting away anything that looks like discomfort. So much so that excuses for not stepping outside our comfort zones are on automatic. We must be more committed to undo some of this than we are to hold on to it. This requires us to be aware of our habit of making excuses for our fears, of accommodating them to such an extent that our lives are on standstill. We must be diligent in prayer as we totally surrender to the leadership and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Listen to God
Hebrews 11:1(NKJV) says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” None of us have laid human eyes on God, but we believe He exists. That’s faith! We have made a mistake in defining faith as only being a way to receive blessings from God. Yes, that’s certainly part of it, but it in no way tells the whole story. Faith is believing what God says. It’s believing that God is who He says He is, and He will do what He says He will do. Romans 10:17(NKJV) gives us another extremely important piece of information. It tells us, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” God blesses His Word, and faith comes to us by hearing the Word of God, by hearing the truth, and allowing it to sink deep in our hearts. So, if you are believing the wrong things, it is because you have listened to the wrong things, and this is something you must change.
You must listen to God, and God alone. You must place yourself in the position of hearing God’s Word and hearing it as often as you possibly can. We learned from Jesus Christ in John 10:10 that the devil is a thief. As soon as we hear the Word and believe it, the enemy gets working on a plot to steal it out of our hearts so that we won’t have faith and trust God. The way to combat this is to get into the Word daily, to confess the Word, and trust it with all that we are.
Do what God says
Jesus Christ said in Mark 14:38 (NLT) “Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” The flesh is the part of us that does not want to walk by the Spirit. The flesh prompts us to do what brings pleasure to our bodies and listening to that will get us into a great deal of trouble. The flesh way of thinking goes against the Will of God. It can cause us to see fear as protection rather than God as our Provider and Protector. Fear can’t protect us, because fear is torment. 1John 4:18(NKJV) says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, He gave us the Spirit of Christ. Because of this, we can face any challenge. We’re not using our own strength. We have victory because we rely totally on the strength of God.
As believers we have supernatural authority. God gave it to us through Jesus Christ, and we are called to stand on that authority in life. We should also know that the enemy will challenge our authority in Christ, trying to get us to fork it over to him. If you’re not convinced of your authority and power in Christ, you’ll always be shaking in your boots, worried about what’s going to happen to you next. This is the condition and attitude that allows a break-in. Our eyes should be wide open as we have confidence that God is not ever going to abandon us. That’s incredibly good news. He is helping you this very moment to surrender your fears and doubts, and to put faith in their place.
2Corinthians 5:7(NKJV) tells us, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” Walking by faith and not by sight is what God is telling you to do. Our responsibility as His children is to do what He says. Like Christ in Luke 22:42, you must surrender and tell God, “Father not my will but your will be done.” God’s Will is for you to be free from the shackles of fear and doubt. Do not accept fear as a way of life.
Hebrews 11:6(NKJV) says, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” God is a Rewarder! He rewards our faith in Him! He’s not telling us to have faith in a situation, relationship, or thing. He is commanding us to have faith in Him, to trust that He is a God who has all power, who loves us, and has empowered us to do great things through Jesus Christ. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
“Don’t Let Fear Hinder Your Faith”, written by KLizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.