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After four members of my family turned 40, we found out how much the kids had picked up on their trepidation. The day before my niece’s ninth birthday, she observed, “Tomorrow I’ll be nine and next year it the big one-oh.”
~ Deborah Shapiro
Fear spreads like a cancer. All too often the fear is, as Zig Ziglar often says, “F – E – A – R” for “False Evidence Appearing Real.” You know that many things in this life scare us. And the reason, we know, is that we are powerless to control the things that bring us apprehension.
Just because you are an Eagle Leader doesn’t mean you are immune to fear. We all know the feelings when someone says, ‘I need to talk to you later’ … in that tone. Who hasn’t experienced the trepidation of being called to the office without any explanation? And there is the less subtle, more overt hair-raising situations … people yelling at you, being lost in unfamiliar territory or the medical report that’s coming on Monday, and it’s only Thursday.
Walking out the mission of Jesus Christ brings a whole new set of evidences that justify a ‘fight or flight’ response in us. Jesus tells us of an incredible source of peace that every Eagle Leader can access in times of fear …
“Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. Matthew 10:27-31 (NKJV)
We become like Jesus when …
o We remember how valued we are to God – in the midst of an attack!
No one ever said the Christ-life would be easy … after all, they crucified Jesus! Every Eagle Leader knows that attempting to take new terrain for the King of kings almost inevitably means a fight by the lord of darkness. For most of us, fighting = fear.
Yet Jesus calls us to stand our ground, assured of His Father’s love for us. We need not fear for we are watched, protected and sent by the Lord of love. Just because they fight back is no reason to be afraid of them. After all, your Father is able to take on all the opposition!
Do not fear … you are surrounded by His love!
© 2009 By Dr. Matthew Lee Smith
