Choose Faith Not Fear

Choose Faith Not Fear Reflections by the Sea © Betsy Glass October 05, 2011

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. Titus 2:11- 14 NIV We are seeing what happens when an ocean roars out of control, with the necessity of building of a bridge over newly cut inlets, which will restore traffic between communities again. The fire that has been burning out of control for months west of the Outer Banks is worthy of taking note of. Even with the torrential rains from a hurricane, the dampened fire has continued to burn. Winds that appear to be calm one minute can build in the next and combined with the right atmospheric conditions, begins to circulate and an out of control tornado starts a rampage of destruction. These are all forms of nature, but do you know that we can operate out of control too? My son in law was teaching me how to operate his boat. I respect his guidance and pay close attention to everything he says to do. I don’t want to lose control of the boat and put our family onboard in danger. Exercising discipline and taking advice are good things if we want to grow and go forward. When we begin to walk away from God’s Word, His guidance and His instruction, is when we start walking in the deep end of the water alone. If we cast our cares on God and seek Him and keep our eyes fixed on Him and His teachings, we won’t lose control and veer off course, where lack of self- control exists. Have you ever been so angry that you did something and then regretted it? Have you ever said words to someone in a few short minutes, only to realize later that it would take many lifetimes to repair the damage done? What causes someone to lose control? Usually it is born out fear of some kind. Fear and living in fear can cause a person to react in many ways, all of which reflect an out of control countenance. But if the emotions, heart and mind are rooted in God and His Ways, we can’t have faith and fear at the same time. God says to walk in faith. We face trials sometimes that make us feel like we want to have a temper tantrum at times. But, did you know that trials are often a test to us and reveals to God where we are in our level of faith? Walk away from anything, any behavior or thoughts that don’t line up with God. (Titus 2) Apologies and repenting brings forgiveness and paves the way for new beginnings and a fresh start. Building faith by reading the Word and memorizing scripture now is like putting money in the bank. The strength from a strong faith will be there for us later when we need to call upon it.