Tag Archives: fear

Do You Look Back? – Norma Thurston Holtman
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The power of Lightning

But Lot’s wife looked back and she became a pillar of salt. Genesis 19:26

Lightning hit our house. The jolt sent the glow of sparks through the closed window blinds. “Smoke,” Dad said. “Get out of the house, now.”

It was 1:30 a.m. and I didn’t waste a second. I ran barefoot in my pajamas only to realize I’d left my glasses on my nightstand. I couldn’t see, but I couldn’t go back.

Lot and his family were told to get out of Sodom and not look back. The temptation to look back, to hesitate, thinking about what you are leaving behind, is great. We weren’t told not to look, but as I read his story I understood the temptation.

I thought my glasses would burn in the house and I would be left half blind, maybe for weeks. Those glasses meant a lot to me, but they were just things. Even though a fire didn’t result, I couldn’t go back into the house until the firemen finished their inspection and gave the okay. Once they did, I rushed inside to retrieve them.

Lot’s wife valued something she left behind enough to ignore the warning of the angels. She looked back and lost her life.

We cling so tightly to things in our life—home, friends, habits, and material possessions. Sometimes I need to leave things behind, like habits, temptations, and my desires for things of this world. Often the things that I long for the most are things I have been warned to leave behind. The story of Lot’s wife teaches us to run from the things that tempt us away from God.

Have you been warned to leave something behind and not look back? When you’re tempted to cling to what is replaceable, choose to leave it behind today. Let Christ save you.

Norma Thurston Holtman is a former RN and homeschool/soccer mom. She is the mother of two adult children. She and her husband make their home in the mountains east of Albuquerque, New Mexico. A long-time Bible study leader, she writes a weekly devotional for her church’s website. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and an aspiring novelist. She desires to use her writing to bring glory to God and encourage fellow believers. Her devotionals can be found at http://2MefromHim.blogspot.com.
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*Photo by Suvro Datta – used by permission freedigitialphotos.net

Be Prepared – Phoebe Leggett
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Desperation

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”  Matthew 4:17 NIV

The desperation of life can baffle the mind and send fear in tremors of uncertainty throughout the body. Most mornings I enjoy a blast of news and a soothing song to begin my day. But I’m on the alert as overwhelming reports of biblically foretold events, although reported in monotone, have caught my attention. Excitement and anxiety seem to clash as I take note of rapidly changing events around the world. For most, the reality of truth fails to inject concern or dread as life continues without a second glance into the future.

The question remains — are we ready for what is ahead? As Christians, a departure into a heavenly future may be near, but for non-believers the outlook can be staggering. And if we’re not prepared for what is ahead, now is the time to get our lives in order.

On the flip side, extreme urgency rules our lives. People rush headlong into their own pleasures, but without purpose. While searching for God they reject the very one who can save them from themselves. Time continues to pass at an exceptional speed as the questions on our minds are often verbalized—”Where did all the time go?”

Jesus preached, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” He knew the truth of the future would become clear. He longed for each of us to know Him and to share eternity with Him upon His return.

Prepare for what is ahead by studying what the Bible has to say about the future. Trust God, the master of the universe, for salvation. And then, stand firm in God’s word, the word that has prevailed throughout generations of time. Then look up. The redemption of the saints is drawing nigh. Are you ready?

Behold, I come like a thief. Blessed is he who stays awake… Revelation 16:15 NIV

Phoebe Leggett is a full-time freelance writer. In 2007 she was presented two awards for her work at the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference in Ridgecrest, North Carolina. She makes her home in Greenville, South Carolina with husband Dana and three felines, and to be close to her children and granddaughter.

In 2004 she faced the darkest day of her life when she learned her youngest son was dead. The only way she survived her trauma was with God by her side. Her first nonfiction is titled It’s My Time To Grieve.

As poet and writer, her articles, stories, and poetry have been published in adult and children’s Christian literature as well as online through www.christiandevotions.us. She serves as Assistant Editor for www.DevoKids.com and she contributes poetry bi-monthly to Critter Magazine. Her work has been published in Slate & Style, Shemom, Harold and Banner Press in Primary Pal: Pacific Press Publishing Association, in Our Little Friend, MS Focus and MS Connection Magazines, Who’s DANN?—a monthly magazine, Gospel Publishing House in LIVE; a weekly journal; the Pentecostal Evangel—an Assemblies of God publication, Heartland Boating, and the Upper Room magazine. Several of her poems have been read on air at WORD Radio in Greenville, South Carolina. Visit her online at www.phoebe-leggett.com.

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Break it Open – She Said
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Shut Tight

“Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. Matthew 27:65-66 (TNIV)

to Break it Open – She Said

The door slammed shut and latched. My shoulders were wedged tight in the tiny locker so I inched my foot forward and kicked at the door. “Somebody let me ouuutttt!”

“Is there someone in there?” I never thought a voice could sound so good.

“Let me out.” The latch rattled and the door popped open. I twisted sideways and stepped out of the locker.

The band director took me by the shoulders. “How long have you been in there?”

“An eternity.” The school  halls were empty, band practice over, and my mom would be getting frantic because I wasn’t home.

It’s no fun to be bullied. The sixth graders were brought to the high school every day for band practice – a disaster waiting to happen and the high schoolers considered us fresh meat to torture. It was a daily occurrence for me. I’d seen the inside of those lockers more times than I wanted…blocked in by chairs, tape, and a trash can filled with mops and brooms. Each time the fear of being sealed in grew stronger. What if they put a lock on the door? I’d never get out.

The only time you seal something shut is when you fear it will escape. That was Pilate’s fear…that Jesus would really do what he said… rise from the dead. How embarrassing would that be? Kill an innocent man then have him rise from the dead. Of course, his excuse was “the body might be stolen,” but the truth was this innocent man might actually be the real thing. I have to wonder if Pilate thought, “better safe than sorry. Seal it.”

Seals are made to be broken so there is easy access to the contents and God popped that seal, releasing the one victorious over death. Now there was proof nothing was stronger than the God of Israel…our God. A broken seal opened the opportunity to salvation and the ability to come before Abba Father ourselves.

The resurrection of Christ solidified God’s might. It proved His love and He is always true to His word. Until that moment, man saw no hope after death but once the seal was broken, all the joy, reward, and truth poured out.

If you’ve sealed your heart shut, break it open and walk straight into the eternal love of Christ. He stands victorious at the tomb.

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Eddie Jones and Cindy Sproles are friends and cofounders of ChristianDevotions.us. They cowrite the popular He Said, She Said devotions and host Blog Talk Radio’s Christian Devotions SPEAK UP! along with Scott McCausey. Eddie and Cindy travel and speak at conferences across the country and they are available to speak at your church or conference. Contact them at cindy@christiandevotions.us.

 

 

 

Do you sense something vital missing from you relationship with your spouse, children, and God? Try He Said, She Said: A Devotional Guide to Cultivating a Life of Passion. This compilation of 54 devotions includes scripture verses, space for journaling, individual prayers and words of wisdom from two of today’s funniest and insightful Christian authors. This heart-warming collection of stories will inspire you to reach for the true source of joy: a life lived for and through God. These deeply personal devotions offer biblical insights and spiritual truths from the perspective of one man and one woman.

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Sometimes He Calms the Storm – Charles Arndt
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And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. Matthew 8:26

Buckets of rain crashed sideways into the side of the house. The wind howled a mysterious sound. It was one-thirty A.M. and flashes of lightning illuminated our dark bedroom. A storm.

“Should we go to the basement?” my wife asked.

“Uh-huh,” I replied.

She quickly gathered our twelve-pound red poodle and started toward the basement. I grabbed a flashlight and guided my wife down the cellar steps. There in the corner of the basement we listened to the thunder crash. Flashes of lightning illuminated the room as the storm howled overhead. I prayed the Lord would look after us and take care of us. Then the storm was gone.

As we emerged through the darkness from the basement, I sat in the comfort of my easy chair and watched the miracle of this storm disappear. I was awed in God’s power.

Man, in all of his wisdom and knowledge, cannot come close to producing anything like we had just witnessed. I remembered the time Jesus and his disciples sat in a boat while a fierce storm tossed the craft back and forth. They, like us, were scared, but He was with them. In their fear, the disciples woke Jesus and pleaded for safety. “Where is your faith?” Jesus said and then told the storm to be still. Instantly the storm listened and the waters were calmed.

If He is so powerful that even the storms and weather listen, what’s our excuse? Shouldn’t we pay attention when he tells us something? O ye of little faith. Listen and see what He tells you to do. Sometimes it’s hard to hear through the noise and distraction of the storm but he always answers, in His time. Listen and have faith. He is in control.

Charles Arndt enjoys writing Christian devotionals, hunting, fishing, and riding his Harley. He and his wife live in the middle of a big wood outside a small town in South Carolina.
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Facing the Fears – Bea Edwards
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Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. Joshua 1:9 (KJV)

My daughter was afraid of the dark. It’s a common complaint of small children — fear of the dark. Parenting books often describe this fear as one of the many phases of childhood and my own daughter was no exception to this phase.

The only way we got past this was by my going with her into dark places. I used to tell her that there was nothing in the dark that wasn’t there when the light was turned on. Occasionally that helped, but most of the time she simply demanded we turn the light on.

With much patience and perseverance, we worked our way through that fear and beyond.

Often, lingering fears from childhood transfer into adulthood. Fear of failure, rejection, fear of the unknown, and financial worries all have an influence on our day-to-day lives. We could say, too, that we are all still afraid of the dark. We fear what we cannot see. We fear the unknown and its outcome. Though as adults we have outgrown the need to have our parents hold our hands when facing the darkness, it is rare to find a person that desires to face the fears of this world completely alone.

The Psalmist David confessed his fear when he said, Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. Even though David was a man after God’s own heart, he must have had some of the same fears that we have today.

Surely, the God that was with David thousands of years ago has not changed. He is with us today, wherever we go, and He will not leave us to face our fears alone. Put your fears in His worthy hands and let Him guide you through.

Bea Edwards enjoys concentrating on writing for children of all ages and has penned short stories for the recent series of books entitled God Makes Lemonade, as well as numerous articles for local papers. She has written for and won multiple honors with Faithwriters, an online writing site for Christian writers, as well as being selected to publish in their yearly book, Best of the Best, Chosen Short Works. She has done undergraduate studies at Trevecca University in Nashville, Tennessee. She is honored to call the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina home, where she lives with her best friend, a four-year-old pit bull named Sophie. She has one grown daughter who is forever, “the apple of her eye.”
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Leave the Driving to Him – Diane Pearson
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In the desert, the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. Exodus 16:2 NIV

“Everything is set for your rental car, Mr. Pearson,” the clerk said. “I just need to see your driver’s license.”

“Sure,” he said, as he pulled his license out of his wallet.

“Your license isn’t valid. It expired six months ago.”

“No problem. We can rent it in my wife’s name,” he said. “Diane, come over here and give her your license.”

I handed the clerk my license and listened in horror as she said, “Your license expired a month ago. Sorry, but we can’t rent you a car without valid licenses.”

There we were at the airport in Florida for a week’s vacation, expecting to come and go as we pleased, drive leisurely down the coast, on no one else’s time schedule. We called a friend in the area, who came to our rescue (and laughed all the way to the airport). He drove us to our rental house and graciously offered to drive us wherever we wanted to go that week. But we grumbled about our loss of freedom. We didn’t want to depend on someone else.

Exodus tells the story of the Israelites who wandered in the wilderness for forty years, completely dependent on God for food, water, and their daily needs. They grumbled a lot about it too. Instead of thankfulness to God for the miracle of daily life-sustaining food (manna from heaven), they complained about the menu. Why do we have to eat manna again today?

The source of their complaints was not the menu. It was the loss of freedom to be in control of their own lives.

With access to life’s modern conveniences (like cars) and smorgasbords of food with endless choices, it’s easy to think we are in control. It’s good to be humbled occasionally, to be reminded that we aren’t in charge of our lives, God is.

God takes us to unexpected places when He’s in control. He provides us with things we never imagined. Let God take control. He’ll steer you in the right direction.

Diane Pearson is a Christian writer, speaker, and teacher from Frankfort, IN, with more than 500 published articles and devotions. She writes a newspaper column, Real-Life Devotions, true stories of God working in people’s lives. Her speaking ministry is based on true stories of God’s miracle-working power. Contact Diane at dipearson@comcast.net or www.dianepearson.org.
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Fitful Dreams – He Said
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Fitful Dreams

Fitful Dreams

As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Genesis 15:12 (NIV)

Listen to Fitful Dreams – He Said

There is a sickness that settles in the pit of my stomach when I sense the absence of God’s presence. My ears ring, skin becomes cool and moist. Nausea overwhelms me. The symptoms are similar to motion sickness and perhaps that’s what it is—an unholy motion of me moving into a thick and dreadful darkness without Him.

I can recall with vivid clarity the terror I felt sitting in the Atlanta airport with no ticket, no cash, and no way home. My only comfort came through the promises of God, so I opened my Bible and highlighted words, claiming His pledge of provision. I remember the dread I felt stepping into darkness in Granada, Nicaragua. Alone and unable to speak the language, I repeated His assurance of protection.

The Psalmist writes: “The Lord God is a sun and a safe-covering. He holds nothing good from those who walk in the way that is right…They who look for the Lord will not be without any good thing…The angel of the Lord stays close around those who fear him, and he takes them out of trouble… Because you have made the Lord your safe place, and the Most High the place where you live, nothing will hurt you. No trouble will come near your tent.”

Powerful promises. And yet Abram fell into a nightmare full of darkness and dread. He’d walked with God into a strange land and found a famine. He’d believed God’s promise of a son but his wife remained barren. He’d pitched his tent in the shadow of God’s mountain but evil, death, and war raged around him. Promises from God—problems from man.

In desperation Abram asked, “O Sovereign Lord how can I know…?” Isn’t that the question we ask? How can I know? How can I be certain there is a God? And if there is, how can I be certain he loves me?

In the depths of Abram’s nightmare, God appeared to him as a blazing torch and a smoking firepot. Hardly comforting images. But in response to our questions of His love and sovereignty, God exchanged His son for us and the swap was executed in a brutal manner. The writer of Hebrews reminds us: “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Terrifying indeed.

That night in the Atlanta airport, God provided me with a faster and cheaper flight home. That night in Granada, He provided me with safe and affordable shelter.

Do you sense a dreadful darkness sweeping over you? Perhaps the gloom you feel is the shadow of the Most High leaning over you as He prepares to scoop you up in His arms.

Nothing to Fear – Cynthia Lott Vogel
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“How happy is anyone who fears Adonai….he will never be moved….He will not be frightened by bad news: he remains steady, trusting in Adonai. His heart is set firm, he will not be afraid, till finally he looks in triumph at his enemies.”
Psalms 112:6a,7, 8

This week we’ve been hit; the problems and potential disasters arriving quickly and furiously: enough finance and serious health issues piling to create terror in anyone’s heart… anyone except for a child of the Lord of the Universe.

This morning, as I sat and asked the Lord to help us, He whispered, “Open to Psalms, I have something there for you.” I opened my Bible to the verse quoted above. The truth of those statements re-centered me and reassured me.

As I thought about them throughout my morning, I realized those verses do not mean that there will never be bad news. They mean firstly, that we should not anticipate what may or may not arrive. And secondly, even if that news comes, we do not need to worry that our “house” will be swept away…for it is built on the ROCK. No one, said Jesus, can remove His children from His hand—not even Satan or the worst thing that can come our way. And He is a good Father, who knows how to give good gifts to His children… although sometimes they are wrapped in difficulty.

Jesus also told his disciples not to fear the things which could kill the body, but rather to fear the one with the power to destroy the soul. For the child of God, the only one to be feared, is Yahweh. And for us, that fear need never cross the line between respect and terror. Praise God for His 24-hour presence and protection!

Place your fears in His care today.

Cynthia Lott Vogel is a writer who writes in much the same way as she prays. The words are the cry of her heart to her Lord and to his people. She loves studying and memorizing Scripture and is currently working on two book manuscripts. Facing numerous physical challenges, she is a mom and a wife of 20 years and does everything possible to remain active despite the limitations of her health. Cynthia is an avid blogger and you may visit one of her blogs at www.cynthialottvogel.blogspot.com.
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