Finding Joy in Today

I own the most adorable, lovable German Shepherd that will scare the living daylights out of you if you don’t know him. In fact, I have had delivery drivers throw packages at the door because Dakota was acting like a lunatic. But what most people don’t realize is he is afraid of almost everything.

Take the Fourth of July, for instance. Every year we go through the same thing. He hears the faintest sound of a firecracker and begins pacing, breathing hard and finding a way of escape; whether it be in the basement or my bedroom or the shower. This year we need to add thunder on the list of what scares Dakota senseless.

The thing is, my dog doesn’t realize who he is. He doesn’t understand that his breed is known to run towards danger and not away from it. Dakota only knows the fear he has imagined in his little head and the torment it causes him. I tell him that he will be fine and safe but he doesn’t understand me. It is such a sad sight to see a mighty dog living with so much fear.

Watching my dog’s crippling anxiety has prompted me to reflect on my own life and how I react to fearful situations. When I am afraid, whether it is by a real situation or one I have imagined in my mind, I react the same way my dog reacts. When I get pain in my body, my mind automatically goes to the worse case scenario. While traveling, I remember the accident I was in and my mind goes to the worse case scenario. Much of the fear I experience could be avoided if I learn to cast my care and worries onto God.

What is Fear?

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines fear as an unpleasant, often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger. Joyce Meyer says that FEAR is False Evidence Appearing Real. Other words for fear can be worry, anxiety, dread, apprehension, or panic.

None of us will ever avoid experiencing some type of struggle, suffering, or loss in our lives that causes fear. Unfortunately, some of us experience fearful situations more often than others, but we can learn to handle fear by believing 2 Timothy 1:7 AMP

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but {He has given us a spirit} of power and of love and of sound judgement and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control.”

This verse says that God did not give us a spirit of fear. The spirit of fear brings torment. It controls our thoughts and emotions. This is the type of fear that crawls up your spine and the back of your neck leaving you unable to shake it off.

Fear can turn into the “what if” thoughts leaving our lives miserable. In her book, “The Power of Praying Through Fear,” Stormie Omartian says that “much of our fear comes from unresolved “What If” thoughts.” What if I fail? What if I am permanently injured? What if I don’t recover from this disease? What if something bad happens to my children? What if my marriage ends in divorce? On and on the list goes on causing us to feel out of control and full of fear. But God says, “I’ve got you. Trust Me.”

God is My Deliverer

I want to share with you a journal entry I wrote during a very stressful time in my life. As I sat down at my desk, I opened my Bible and God began speaking to me and I quickly wrote down His words. I pray this will minister to someone reading this today.

“I (God) have been speaking to you through this whole battle. Your fear of “what ifs” and “what could be” has deafened your ear to My still, small voice. The chaos has caused you to see the battle and to lose sight of the Commander in charge. Turn your eyes upon Me and watch Me defeat your oppressor. For I Am the Victor and Deliverer of my children. Keep your eyes on Me and not on your battle. Stand still and rest in Me. Trust Me. Have I not already spoken My words to you? Take courage and cast your eyes upon Me. Nothing is too hard for Me! For I am the God of the impossible!

God is our deliverer. Nothing in our lives ever takes God by surprise. All He asks of us is to trust, believe and rest in Him. Seek after God and the things of the world will dim in the light of His glory.

Psalm 34:4 NKJV says:

“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.”

There is confidence in knowing the Lord will protect and deliver us from our fears. When King David wrote this Psalm, he was experiencing great fear. He knew who to turn to. Instead of allowing the fear to control him, he sought after God.

I often wonder if David felt like us when we are in a fearful situation. Sometimes the fear speaks louder than our faith. When we pray, it feels like God is distant. Did David feel the same? I’m sure his prayer wasn’t some casual “God help me” and everything was good. I think he literally had to seek and pursue God. David had to look past the fear blinding him from seeing God.

Did you ever play hide and seek as a child? When the person was hiding, it was sometimes difficult to find them because they were good at the game. They were still near you, but it was hard to see them. We had to search and keep searching until we found them.

Jeremiah 29:13 says:

“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

If we want to be delivered from fear, we truly need to make it our priority to seek after God. Run towards Him with all of your might. We live in a society that would rather seek after social media, television, computers, and the internet. So often we leave the most important One out of our day.

In my opinion, David’s deliverance didn’t happen instantaneously. I believe as he sought after the Lord, God in turn, delivered him from his fears. His whole heart and soul ran after God.

Deuteronomy 4:29 says:

“But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul”

Conclusion

Just as it hurts our hearts when we witness our children (or pets) battling fear, God, in the same way, hurts when He sees us battling fear. We need to learn to seek after Him with our whole heart and cast our worries and fears onto Him. When we seek Him with our entire being, He will hear from heaven and deliver us from our fears.