Day 17 (29 August): Free from Fear

Morning Meditation: Psalm 112

Passage: Various (as below)

Pastor Daniel senses that since our prayer the day before, we have broken through the cloud of fear in our land. To move on from this spiritual breakthrough, we need to challenge ourselves to be set free from the various fears in life.

Today, we looked at the topic of fear and how we can be set free from any form of fear that would prevent us from accomplishing all that God has set forth for us in our land.

What does fear do to us? Pastor Daniel shared 4 possible responses when we allow fear to grip us.

Effects of fear in our lives
	Freezes us. When we are gripped by fear, we will be paralyzed. Ever try standing on the edge of a very high building and look down? If your legs freeze when you look down, that’s the effect of fear.
	Flee. Ever been chased by a fierce dog with very sharp teeth? You’ll probably run. That’s another effect of fear.
	Faint. When we are fearful, we can physically faint (i.e. pass out). Also, we can be faint-hearted. This is when we do stupid things like tell lies, cheat or betray others. Take Peter for example. He was gripped by fear when Jesus was arrested and became faint-hearted. As a result, he denied Jesus three times.
	Fight back. Some people will instinctively fight back due to fear like a dog, when cornered may resort to attacking.

How then can we counter fear? Biblically, there is 5 ways for us to counter fear.

Ways to counter fear
	Develop faith in God. How? In Romans 10:17, we are told that our faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God. Fill ourselves with the word of God and live on his promises. Then, our faith will grow. Our faith will also grow from our intimacy with God (Luke 5:16) through prayer. Jesus is our prime example of that intimacy that even at the raising of Lazarus, Jesus revealed to us how intimate He was with the Father (John 11:41-42).
	Prayer. When we read Acts 4:29-31, it was after the prayer that the people were given the boldness by the Holy Spirit and preached the word of God even more boldly after that. Prayer has an ability to not only draw us closer to God but helps build faith in our lives.
	Deep love for God. In 1 John 4:18, we trust that perfect love casts our fear. This perfect love (i.e. agape love) comes only from God. This love is abounding and when we grow more in this love, it will help us to overflow to everyone around us.
	Focus on Jesus. Philippians chapter 3 which was written by Paul in jail was full of joy because Paul focused on Jesus. We do not read about his grumblings in prison or his complaint. Instead, His focus was on Jesus and he turned his eyes away from all the real pain and despair of being jailed and instead sought to be an encouragement to the church of Philippi.
	Focus on the future. We are all runners, running a race to win all the way to the end. We believe that in the coming days, the best is yet to come. Our hope is in the LORD and His coming future. When we focus on the ‘finishing line’, where Christ Jesus will return as King.

Point of Reflection:

Fear in life is one of the greatest obstacles in Christian faith. Are you gripped by anything in life? Come to God in prayer and ask Him to set you free from it. Surrender your life fully into God’s hands and ask Him to replace that ‘fear’ with ‘faith’.