*Devotion
Two areas Satan has defeated a lot of Christ followers in are fear and doubt. Every child of God has been given all the power they need to overcome in life through Jesus Christ. The truth is, most of them will never see the fruit of it because they allow fear and doubt to keep them in bondage. If you are Christ follower, I want to encourage you that fear and doubt ought not have a place in your life. With God’s help and commitment to doing your part of praying, reading and studying and applying God’s Word to your life daily, it is possible to live a fear- and doubt-free life through Christ Jesus.
Let us see what the Word of God has to say about this in Mark 9:14-24
There are 365 times in the Bible when God tells believers not to fear. That is one life-changing word for every day of the year. This is not by happenstance. God, in His omniscience, knew we would be tempted with fear on our journey of walking with Christ. God knew there would times when fear would try to discourage us from obeying Him. God knew that Satan would try to use fear to keep us from being in relationship with Him. God knew that fear would try to keep us from answering His call on our life. God knew we would have to overcome fear to be and do all He created and purposed us for. 2 Timothy 1:7 says, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
It is important that we understand the source of fear. It is Satan. Fear is false evidence appearing real, and it drives Satan to action in our lives just as faith drives God to action in our lives. When you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, you were infused with the power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing shall by any means hurt you (Luke 10:19). This means God has given you the power to overcome every hard thing you will every face in life. The only way you are able to do this is to do it His way. This means doing so according to His Word.
The other area Satan has defeated a lot of Christ followers in is in the space of doubt. Being doubleminded (James 1:6-8). The true source of doubt is being led by our emotions. It is one moment believing God can and will do what His Word promises, then when we feel differently and/or our circumstances look differently we doubt whether God is going to show up in our life. Emotions, in and of themselves, are not bad. God gave us emotions to express how we view and/or relate to people, places and/or things. However, emotions are fickle and unstable. How many days have you woke up feeling joyous and the next feeling downtrodden? Or even moment-to-moment you may notice your emotions drastically changing. Our emotions cannot be trusted to be the Captain of our ship. They were never meant to be a source of what we know to be Truth; nor the basis by which we make life decisions. This is an authority only given to God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit.
As believers we cannot walk in doubt and faith at the same time. It is impossible. We must choose whether we will believe and take God at His Word or not. Let us be people who take God at His Word. God is not like man. He is faithful and can be depended upon at all times and in every situation. The King James Version of Deuteronomy 7:9 renders it this way, “Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;”
Just as God through Christ is faithful and just to forgive us our trespasses and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), He is also faithful to keep His Word to us in our everyday lives. Numbers 23:19 says “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” God cannot lie. This means whatever He says He will do, He will do. You can take it to the bank. The only way you will see it come to pass in your life though is to believe with no doubt.
Ways to Release Fear and Doubt from Your Life
The way we release fear and doubt from our lives is to get to know God. Websters 1828 Dictionary defines the word “know” as to perceive with certainty, to have full assurance of; to have clear and certain perception; not to be doubtful”. A lot of believers allow fear and doubt to rule their lives because they simply do not spend enough time with God to learn who He is. When you know God, you know His character, heart and mind. When you know God, you know what His works look like in your life. When you know God, you know that He will never leave nor forsake you. When you know God, you know He is a man of His Word. If He said it, it will come to pass. His word will not come back to Him void.
Another noteworthy way to release fear and doubt from your life is through worship. There is something about worshipping God for who He is that makes the weight of anything earthly miniscule. When we get our focus off life as we know it and set the whole of our existence on Him in worship, we begin to see our lives through His love, power, might and glory. It is impossible for fear and doubt to coexist and contend with the matchless love and glory of God (1 John 4:18).
Spending daily time with God in prayer, reading, studying and applying His Word and worship really are the keys to overcoming fear and doubt in the life of Christ followers. This builds your faith and trust in God and His Word and teaches you God’s character and ways so you can be assured He is always with you.
Prayer to Release Fear and Doubt from Your Life
Father God, in the name of Jesus. Thank you for your Word. Thank you for being mindful enough of me to encourage me daily not to fear. First, I repent for anytime I have allowed fear and/or doubt to keep me from trusting you. You have been nothing but faithful, loving, merciful and gracious to me even though I am undeserving. For that I am eternally grateful. Lord, help me to stay in faith without wavering or doubting. I declare that fear and doubt no longer has a place in my life. I submit to you and resist them both by the power and authority invested in us in Jesus’ name. I declare that from this day forward I will take my rightful place through Christ Jesus as your son or daughter of royal priesthood who is victorious in every area of my life in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Today’s Challenge
Today, I am challenging you to respond with action in the following ways:
1. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to show you any areas in your life you have allowed fear and doubt to exist.
2. Find and read aloud three Scriptures that speak to that/those area(s), confess them over your life, write them down and meditate on them throughout the day. To Get You Started: Read, meditate on and pray Psalm 27:1, Isaiah 41:13 and 2 Timothy 1:7.
3. Keep a journal with you throughout the day and take note of any revelations the Holy Spirit gifts you as you meditate on these Scriptures.
4. Before you go to bed, write down one action step you are going to take to align this area to God’s Word. Find and share with your accountability partner.
Comment below what the Holy Spirit revealed