Don't Be Afraid

So one of the things that were suggested to do last week in my Bible study was verse mapping.  It is a way of dissecting the verse to get a greater understanding of the meaning.  As I said in my last post our reflection verse for the week was Isaiah 41:10,

                          "Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.

    Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you.

                                             I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.  

"While this verse is comforting, the word "afraid" does not always sit well with me. According to Dictionary.com, the definition of afraid is "feeling reluctance, unwillingness, distaste or the like".  

I see this as an obstacle.  Being afraid or fearful is something that holds us back.  It holds us back from being who the Lord wants us to be or keeps us from going where he wants us to go.  Knowing that we should be doing something makes us feel anxious.  We become anxious when we find ourselves stuck in traffic knowing that we will be late for work.  In the same way we can become anxious knowing that we should be doing something that the Lord asks us to do...maybe he wants you to take a new job offer across the country or maybe he is asking you to give up a bad habit or in my case it was to go back to school at 34 years old.

Whatever it is we are anxious about, this verse says that God is with us.  He is our God so therefore he has a relationship with us.  He will be there to help us with whatever we are going through.  We are not the only ones who have ever been afraid or fearful.  The Bible has numerous accounts of God telling people to not be afraid.

• Genesis 15:1 Abram was feeling afraid.  God told him, "Do not be afraid, Abram.  I am your shield, your very great reward".  God was with him as he will be with us and defend us through difficult times.

• Deuteronomy 3:22 Joshua was facing evil forces in the promised land.  God told Joshua, "Do not be afraid of them; the Lord your God himself will fight for you".  We have our own evil forces that we face everyday...hate, hurt, temptations, etc...but God has promised to fight these with us if we allow him too.  

For me, I have to remember that my fear is not always a bad thing.  It is most likely something or somewhere that the Lord is trying to get me to.  I am not talking about my fear of parking garages, but the fear I had like going back to school while raising two young children.  I am not talking about my fear of watching horror movies, but more like the fear I had of joining an online Bible study with women I don't even know.  When we give our fears to the Lord you never know where you might end up, but I can tell you that it will be worth it!!

Blessings!