From the desk of Steve Shultz:
We've all dealt with fear on different levels and occasions. But as we abide in Him and His perfect love, it casts it all out. Tiffany Ann Lewis shares her struggles and some great insight in this word...so fear not!
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Tiffany Ann Lewis:
Fear Not, Abide in Him
Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. John 14:1
I have not been a person that has experienced bouts of fear for most of my life. However, the moment I discovered that I was going to be a Grandma that all changed! While it's true that this was the most wonderful news in the world, suddenly the "what ifs" assaulted me from every side. If a fearful thought entered my mind, it only took a moment before I would be into a full-fledged panic. I knew I couldn't keep living like this, but I didn't know what to do to make it stop. It was then that the Lord spoke personally to my heart, "Tiffany, fear not!"
I started to study out biblical fear and was surprised to learn that in many places this phrase is written in a command form. I was even more surprised to learn that it is the most frequently used command that God gives! This only added to my fears because now I felt as though I was breaking God's commandments. However, there is a big difference between willful disobedience and experiencing fear. This isn't a commandment with a consequence, it's actually Divine encouragement. The phrase carries with it the weight of the intensity that the speaker is using. Jesus said it this way, "Let not your heart be troubled" (John 14:1). Can you identify?
Thus, in these days of modern living, we are in a permanent state of arousal. These fears and worries can take a toll on our bodies in the form of ulcers, depression, headaches, anxiety, heart palpitations, addiction, anger, etc. Fear can interfere with your job, your lifestyle, and even your relationships. Can you see why God is emphatic about telling us not to fear? So, although God is not punishing us because we experience fear even though He commanded us not to, there is a very real consequence that we experience.
How can we be freed from the paralysis this kind of fear generates? First John 4:18 tells us that "perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment..." My fears were beginning to torment me. They were consuming my life and robbing me of the joy of the season that I was in. But when I realized that Jesus would rather suffer the shame and pain of the Cross rather than live without us, it put a new perspective on my fears.
The revelation of His outrageous love can make our fears much smaller in comparison. Terror is the only appropriate response when you come face to face with the God who can destroy everything, unless you know that you know that He's got you in the palm in His hands. When you know His perfect love for you, your only response then is to worship.
The Hebrew word for fear is yarah (Strong's #3372) and paints that response spiritually with the pictographs of each Hebrew letter. Yarah is spelled: yud – resh – aleph.
Yud – the picture of a hand, representing power
Resh – the picture of a head, representing authority
Aleph – the picture of an ox, representing a strong animal of sacrifice
I look at these letters of God and my heart is no longer troubled. Although I've been afraid (yarah), I choose to place my whole life in His hands (yud). He is the head (resh) of my life, my King, my strong Savior, Jesus, that sacrificed His life (aleph) for me.
Abide...
And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. John 10:28
Selah...
I believe that an important factor to experiencing peace that surpasses our understanding is choosing to abide in His love. In Matthew 23:37 Jesus uses the image of a mother bird that will shield and protect her young under her wings and says, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!"
He longs to gather us so we will abide, but sometimes we are not willing. We want to fight the situation, or maybe even Him because He allowed it to happen. Or worse, maybe we want to give up on Him and run away from our faith. Beloved, God, the calmer of the chaos, is saying, "Abide, dwell, sit down, stay with Me, let My love for you cast out your fear." He is inviting us to abide under His wing when all hell is breaking loose. Although it may seem impossible right now, there will be healing found in His perfect love.
Let's pray: Holy Spirit, please give us a revelation of Your love so that when fears try to comes against us, we still know that You are good, You are God, and Your love will never fail. Convince us Lord. Amen.
Tiffany Ann Lewis
Dancing with the Flame of the Lord Ministries
Email: tiffanyann@tiffanyannlewis.com
Tiffany Ann Lewis is a prophetic worship leader and Bible teacher with a unique focus on Biblical Hebrew, and whose heart has been passionately awakened by a God who sees us in our shortcomings, loves us in spite of it all, and calls out to us so we can live (Ezekiel 16). Her vision is to create an atmosphere in worship where we can meet with God face to face, where the Spirit of God moves freely, releasing emotional, spiritual and physical healing, and igniting a passion for our Heavenly Bridegroom, Jesus. Tiffany Ann has been ministering for over 10 years in prophetic worship throughout the Body of Christ. She worships with her family at Northway Church in Malta, New York, where she serves on the worship team.
