“Fear is stupid. So are regrets.” ~ Marilyn Monroe
Have you ever allowed fear to immobilize you? If you are like most everyone else, that answer would be yes. Fear often immobilizes us. Many times, that fear is irrational. Rational or irrational, however, fear can keep us from doing what we need to do. What happens when we allow fear to keep us from doing something? We end up regretting that we did not take the initiative or have the courage needed to do what fear kept us from doing.
In my opinion, fear is one of the devil’s top tools when dealing with us. The devil uses our fear in an attempt to keep us from going out into the world and doing what Jesus commissioned us to do: love, cherish, respect, and build up one another. If that fear can be kept stoked deep within us, the likelihood of our going out decreases radically.
The Holy Spirit can remove fear from our lives if we but allow it to happen. Consider the Apostles in the Upper Room. They were locked in the room in fear, fear for their lives. Jesus had ascended to heaven and left them on their own. He commissioned them to continue His mission. He promised to send the Holy Spirit to them. But, as of yet, they hadn’t received it.
Then the day of Pentecost arrived. The Holy Spirit came down upon Mary and the Apostles in the Upper Room and they were given many wonderful gifts. One of the gifts was courage, the courage necessary to overcome their fear. In that moment, they went out to proclaim the Good News in languages they didn’t even know how to speak. They went out trusting God and God supplied the rest.
That happened on Pentecost almost two thousand years ago. It still happens to this very day. If we step out in faith, God takes care of the rest. All we need to do is accept the courage that comes to us from the Holy Spirit and trust that God will take care of us. Doing so, there is no reason to fear and the devil is defeated.
Ah, but the devil knows that, which is why he constantly ramps up fear and regret in us. If he can keep us fearful and wallowing in regret, we will not have the wherewithal to look beyond ourselves and do what we are called to do by the Lord.
The choice belongs to each and every one of us. Do we want to remain a captive to fear and regret or do we want to live in the freedom of God’s love?
FAITH ACTION: Be deliberate in living your faith today and do what the Lord calls you to do.