Towards the end of Paul’s life he wrote a farewell letter to a guy named Timothy. Timothy was not Paul’s biological son, but both viewed their relationship father-son like. Paul was like a mentor/dad to Timothy. As this was the last letter of his life, (assuming he knew it would be) think of it as straight to the point…… “here’s what matters most child”. Here’s my favorite part of Paul’s letter:
2 Timothy 1:7 For God has NOT given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
This is not the kind of fear like we get standing on the edge of 10,000 foot cliff or if we were being robbed, etc… This is the kind of fear that rests in our minds. Like anxiety, timidness from worrying of what others may think, fear that we might be rejected again… fears of uncertainties in today’s economy and other things happening in our world. It’s not that reality isn’t real. We are in fact in uncertain times. However, the spirt of fear that can consume you because of these times is the trap. You see those are all lies… and there are many more – you get the point.
Notice he didn’t say fear is not real. In fact he called it what it is – a spirit. He also tells us it does NOT come from God. That would leave only one place the spirit of fear comes from – the deceiver. These sort of fears are designed to keep us from being all who God created us to be… even in uncertain times. He created you just like He created Timothy – with a spirit of:
POWER, LOVE & A SOUND MIND!!
This Lion painting reminds me of this daily. My wife Rachel painted it for me a few years back and it hangs right behind my chair as I type this. Reminding me to be bold and courageous and never let the spirit of fear dictate the direction of my life. It doesn’t mean I am not afraid at times. There’s just no reason to submit my life to that fear. Like many reading this, I am also a parent. And like Paul, I desire for my children to see me handle that fear well, and in turn, they understand this lesson too.
I pray today that you are reminded of who you are and how powerfully you are created.
You are a lion/lioness!!
Expect to Win,
Zach Vassar l Company Coach
coachvassar@gmail.com
Matthew 6:33
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