Why You Don't Have to Live Afraid
I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows. – Luke 12:4-7
I’ll be honest with you; I hate watching the news. Maybe it’s my background in marketing and my recognition to heavily edited storytelling when I see it, but it drives me crazy to watch the media twist a common story and turn it into something dramatic and alarming. But lately I’ve found myself refusing news or shying away from the latest murder-mystery documentary on Netflix for a whole other matter than being annoyed. I’m scared.
Shootings in synagogues and schools, kidnappings, bombings, cyber terrorism, you name it. I often find myself hearing about these horrible situations and wondering “what if something like that happened to me or one of my kids someday?” Somedays the world feels like it’s on fire and just when things start settling down and the fire is contained, the wind shifts and something else bad happens. All of these happenings can keep me in an anxiety-stricken mode of either panic or paralysis. Neither one an appropriate response to a hurting world.
But while we know we live in a fallen world that is full of sin and destruction, we don’t have to let fear have the final say when it comes to our peace. While there are a multitude of things that can go wrong and hurts we will endure, we have the ultimate rebuttal to fear; Jesus.
In Luke chapter 12 verses 6-7, Jesus assures us of our standing with God. He explains that we are remembered, loved, and adored by the Creator of the universe, so much that he knows the number of hairs on our heads. And taking it further, just before these verses, Jesus boldly declares that we don’t even have to fear the people or possibilities that could plan to harm us. “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do.” (v 4). We don’t have to spend our days worrying about impending threats, natural disasters, sickness, or worst case scenarios because regardless of what should come to pass, we have the love of our Savior, a place in Heaven, and a Holy standing with our God who knows and loves us.
Although terrible things can happen on earth, we can still experience the freedom we have from Jesus while we’re here. We can have peace because of His presence. By keeping the perspective that God knows and loves us so much that He knows every hair on our heads and that He sent His own Son to die on a cross so we could spend eternity in Heaven, we can tell fear that it has no place here. We can live without the constant fear of the future because Jesus has already set us free!
Challenge: What are you afraid of? Does remembering your promised future in Heaven give you peace? Share your thoughts about today's post and find prayer and helpful perspective from others in the Wheatful Woman community!
With you in the thick of it,
Jantzen
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Jantzen Jolly-Miller is a small business marketing professional and freelance faith writer who is on a mission to help women get real: real with themselves, with their business, and with their relationship with God and His church. In addition to being the lead content writer for Wheat and Honey Co., she blogs about personal takeaways from her life and faith walk to help women create positive change in their everyday routines at JantzenJollyMiller.com
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