Afraid?

Are you always afraid or fearful for one reason or another? Do you know that the Word of God says that a person is a slave to whatever he gives into? Yes it does in 2 Peter 2:19, check it out for yourself. When you are a self-professed worrier, as some like to profess to be; anxious for everything, a literal worryguts, endlessly fixated on your challenges and difficulties – some warranted, others contrived – and afraid of the outcome, then you are enslaved by your fears. 

All over the Old and New Testaments are instances where individuals and groups of people are told to not be afraid. 

Moses told the people, "Don't be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today…” – Exodus 13:14 NLT

"Do not be afraid of them," the LORD said to Joshua – Joshua 10:8 NLT

“Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” – John 14:27 NIV

In his letter to Timothy, Paul wrote,

“The Spirit God gave us does not make us afraid. His Spirit is a source of power and love and self-control.” – 2 Timothy 1:7 ERV

God never meant for us to be a people afraid but people who would trust the intent of His heart and believe that He desires nothing but our benefit. God has promised you and me that the plan He Himself has designed for each and every one of our lives is great (Jeremiah 29:11-14) but we have to cooperate with God by believing what He says. Instead we believe that it’s natural to be afraid, even of our own shadows, not realizing that to constantly think this way only keeps us rooted in fear.

Isaiah 26:3 assures us that if we keep our minds fixed on God, He will keep us in perfect peace. However, this cannot be properly done by means of our own power, we have to rely on the Holy Spirit’s power. God gave to us a powerful, loving, and disciplined Spirit, upon whose power we must draw if we are to truly overcome the fear to which we have given dominion over our lives.

Being continuously afraid gives fear a stranglehold on your mind and in turn your heart, and this chokes the life out of what you believe concerning God’s promises toward you. This fearfulness wreaks havoc in every area of your life; your general sense of perception is wrought askew, causing you to fall into a state of unbelief and making you unable to accept God’s testimony about you as a new creation in Christ Jesus. Consequently, you are not able to exercise even your mustard seed sized faith. 

Beloved, the sincere faith you had when you first believed in the Saviour, is that same faith you must keep ablaze even in the worst of circumstances. You must come to the realization that it is the same God who lovingly sent His only Son to die for you who is working all things together for your well-being. So, there is no reason to be afraid, is there? He knows what’s coming and it’s never for your harm but always for your ultimate good. If you continue to fear for your life and of what’s to come, you haven’t yet recognized your loving Father and the abundant blessings He has in store for you. 

We tend to give too much significance to our fears. Please, don’t let fear steal your reward (see Matthew 25:24-29). Surrender, as you once did yourself, whatever you are afraid of to God and allow Him to redeem it for something that is worthy. Let the transforming power of His Spirit transform your life. Be anxious for nothing (see Philippians 4:6).

Amen†

Afraid?

Shelley Johnson August 15, 2017

Love Yourself

You are God’s unique creation, wonderfully complex, an example of His marvelous workmanship and an imprint of His own image and likeness. There’s not another person in this world that’s like you, even if you’re an identical twin, you are still one of a kind. (see Psalm 139:13-18)

Jesus let us know in Matthew 22:39 that we are to love our neighbour as we love ourselves. Now the question is, do you love yourself? For how can you fulfill this great commandment to love, if you do not love yourself? Please do not confuse loving yourself with the kind self-love that is mired in vanity, self-centeredness, pride and arrogance – that’s a whole other topic. No this is about a love for self which promotes inner peace and contentment, love and compassion for others and most importantly love of God.

Sadly though, you look at yourself and you see only brokenness but that is not how God sees you. Beloved, God sees you as His unique and wonderful creation; He looks at you and He sees His marvelous workmanship. God looks at you and sees someone precious. Everything God created is good (1 Timothy 4:4) and that includes you.

I believe that the only way that you and I can properly love, self and others, is through a heart transformed by God’s Love. As you know, God is Love, that’s who He is, and His love bears no condemnation. But we have a tendency to engage in self-condemnation, to indulge in self-criticism and a depreciation of self. You see, when all you do is seek out the faults in yourself it makes it very easy for you to find fault in others too and this, in no way, honours God’s creation.

Whatever your reason for your lack of self-appreciation, it’s time for you to have a confrontation with Love, God’s love and to abide in that love, a love that enables you to see, in yourself, the beauty of God’s creation. The truth is, God loves you just as you are right now. He loved you first (1 John 4:19). 

Perhaps you’re thinking that this is easier said than done but know that you have this promise, 

“whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13 NLT)

This word, “whoever” means anyone and everyone – you, me, and everybody. You do not have to do this on your own, you are not expected to. God knows that the only way that you can cultivate the kind of love that’s needed is by the transforming power of His Holy Spirit working in you and with you. So, today, right where you are, call on Him, cry out to Him and allow His love to move you to love.

Amen†

Love Yourself

Shelley Johnson August 2, 2017

An Act of Love

To love your neighbour is not an act of obedience, as some tend to believe, but rather, is an act of love free of condemnation. To genuinely love another who is your polar opposite in culture, values, up-bringing, sexual orientation, creed and perception of God, is not easy, however that’s exactly what this great commandment urges us to do. Following directly after the first and greatest, which is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind” indicates to us that it is indeed a consequence of the first. It shows that it is only when we allow the love of God to transform our hearts that we can then move towards acts of sacrificial, non-judgmental love. 

A heart transformed by God’s love can do nothing else but act out of love. In order for us to understand what neighbourly love is, Jesus left us with the parable of The Good Samaritan (see Matthew 22:34-40). Separated by centuries of animosity and divergent religious practices, beliefs and values, Samaritans were despised by Jews, yet Jesus’ cleverly woven tale of the innate goodness of man borne from godly love, has as its hero, a man of Samaria, a perceived enemy. 

An act of love demonstrated to us by that person who we have always considered to be an unworthy, un-lovable social outcast may prove awkward, even insulting, but God wants us to cast off our pride and our prejudices and see every aspect of His beautiful, praise worthy creation in every human being. He wants us to see others as He sees each one of us, not as the broken reflections of His divine nature that we are, but as reflections of His perfect Son, through an amazing transforming love which He alone can manifest in us. 

God’s love for us in Christ Jesus, His beloved Son, is a deep, wide, all-forgiving love that brings a grace that is greater than all our sin. To love our neighbour, is an act of love that refuses to allow us to love based on our judgments of them and their judgments of us. 

Amen†

An Act of Love

Shelley Johnson August 1, 2017