1 John 4:18
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
Devotional Thoughts
By David Wilkerson
When our fear becomes overwhelming, we must remind ourselves of how great our God is.
We need to recall all his great deliverances for those who have trusted in him, and claim the same majestic power for our present trial.
Fear cannot get a stranglehold on any servant who has a vision of God’s greatness and majesty.
Nehemiah understood this well.
He paced back and forth as Jerusalem was surrounded by a fierce coalition of nations ready to attack.
A weary remnant was working around the clock to restore Jerusalem’s walls against these adversaries.
They had to toil with a hammer in one hand and a sword in the other.
As the hours ticked away, fear began to set in.
How were they able to resist succumbing to fear?
Nehemiah reminded them of how great and mighty their God is:
“And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, 'Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes'” (Nehemiah 4:14).
That is exactly how Moses dealt with fear in Israel.
He instructed the people,
“If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are greater than I. How can I dispossess them?’ you shall not be afraid of them but you shall remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt…You shall not be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God” (Deuteronomy 7:17-18, 21).
Moses was saying, “You are going to face many great enemies who are more powerful than you.
You will wonder how you can ever gain victory against such odds but you must remember the awesome might of your God.
Remind yourselves how faithful he was to deliver you in the past.”
“He is your praise. He is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen” (Deuteronomy 10:21).
If your faith is shaken, remind yourself of how mighty your God is.
Recount his many deliverances in your life and you will find any grip of fear being broken by a vision of his majesty.
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