For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)
The New Living Translation reads:
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity,
but of power, love, and self-discipline.
It is a challenge to not feel any fear, especially these days when you see so much upheaval in the world. But God’s Word isn’t just for certain people living during a specific time in history, it’s for all mankind and for all times. God is not surprised by the things going on in the world. He knows the end from the beginning and yet He commands us not to fear.
I have had my struggles with fear because I am naturally shy. But, despite how I feel, I must believe what God says about me and not rely on how I feel. You see, facts are not the same as truth. We can look at our circumstances which are facts. Your bank balance is a fact. What the doctor says about your health is a fact. Where you work is a fact. God’s Word is truth. The truth of God’s Word always overrides the facts if you put your trust in it. Facts are subject to change when you add God’s Word and your faith.
It’s easy to get caught up in your circumstances and just believe what you can see. After all, isn’t that what we teach our children when they are small? You see with your eyes, you hear with your ears, you taste with your mouth, you smell with your nose, and you feel with your hands. But as believers, there is the spiritual realm that is just as real as the physical world we live in. We do not live by sight, we live by faith. So how do we stop thinking like the world and start thinking God’s thoughts? By renewing our mind daily in God’s Word. To have a “sound mind” and not a mind filled with fearful thoughts, we must have a “faith-filled” mind. Replacing the fearful thoughts with faith-filled thoughts.
The first thing you must do is fill your mind with the Word of God. It is the “Bread of Life.” You can’t change your thinking unless you put truth into it by reading God’s Word. That means turning off the distractions of technology and setting that time aside for reading and meditating on God’s Word.
Did you know God has commanded us not to be afraid? Joshua 1:9 (NASB) says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
We are like salmon swimming upstream. It’s a constant struggle to not let the things of this world drag us down. If we stop, we will be pulled back downstream just by living our everyday lives in a sinful world. Everything in the world is tainted by the effects of sin. Once we get back into the Word, we start swimming in the right direction: upstream. We cannot become complacent or the world will drag us back down the stream and we will begin to think fearful thoughts again.
Put everything negative out of your mind because what you think about will become words. Fear-filled thoughts produce fear-filled words. If your life has suffered loss at the hands of the enemy, don’t focus on that.
Read Scriptures every day about restoration and abundance and fix your mind on those things. Think faith and love thoughts. Then, speak faith and love words. That’s when real faith in God will rise up in your heart and in your mind.
With God, we can do the impossible. Just imagine that for a minute. If God says I can do it, then I can do it – no exceptions! Just because it might be difficult, doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Things that are impossible with man are possible with God. We just need to believe it, live it and do it!
Philippians 4:8-9 (KJV) says, “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; If there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do; and the God of peace shall be with you.”
More faith and less fear equals a peaceful life. How do we have this peace? By doing what God’s Word says. As soon as we read a verse that we realize we are not doing, we must immediately make a course correction, just like a ship that goes off course. If strong winds blow a ship off course, the captain must make a course correction and steer the ship back on course. Rather than trying to justify why you think or believe a certain way based on your circumstances, only believe and act on what is in the Word of God. It is the undeniable truth and truth always overrides facts! Remember, facts are subject to change when you put your faith in the truth of God’s Word! Read it, meditate on it, speak it out and watch God do the impossible in your life!
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