Fear and faith cannot coexist


Fear and faith cannot coexist

We cannot confess our love for the Lord Jesus Christ and still be fearful. 

But we do.

As mothers we fear (and worry) way too much.

We are fearful about the world our children are living in, we worry about their health, their education, we fear for their future, we fear for their safety.

In fact many mothers will worry about things that doesn't  even exist.


We are experts at generating our own fears. 


Even though we are told over and over again in the bible to TRUST IN THE LORD, we still worry and remain fearful.

Why . . . because for many mothers, it is very difficult to hand over one's problems to the Lord and let go. But this is what we need to do . . .  MUST do.

Our children might trip and fall. They might even get sick. They might eat things they shouldn't, they might break an arm, they might do things we don't like. But these are all part of growing up.

We cannot wrap our children in cotton-wool. 


In fact not only is this fear unhealthy for us as mothers, we are damaging our children in the long term. Our fear of "what-ifs" can result in restricting our children — not letting them run and play in case something happens. Not letting them form friendships in case they meet someone unsuitable.  Not telling them about the facts-of-life in case they become promiscuous. Not letting them make decisions and learning from them.

I grew up in the 1970s. My mother let my brothers and I run all over our farm. As long as we were back in time for lunch and dinner she was happy for us to explore. We played in the creeks (I loved catching tabpoles), my brothers made dams, we climbed fences and trees and rolled down hills — we were children and life was good.  I sometimes came home with scratches from tumbles, I even saw snakes (almost stepped on a few too) but none of these things were reasons to stop us being children. My mother never dreamed of restricting our outdoor time or making sure we stayed close to the house just in case something happened.

The idea of the helicopter parenting didn't exist in the past. This is a modern phenomenon and one that is not healthy or wise. I am so thankful my parents didn't hover over my every movement and allowed me to trip and fall — those childhood stumbles are what makes us strong and resilient. It teaches us to get up when we fall down and not give up.

As Christians we must not fear — fear is not acceptable because it means we are not trusting in the Lord, Satan has taken hold and weakening our faith. We will face various trails as parents but each one should bring us closer to God and further and further away from fear. 

My son has a motorbike, its big, black and powerful. There are moments when I become fearful of "what might happen" but I keep on reminding myself that God is watching over him and whatever does happens, it is in Gods hands. We must find a "quiet peace" through every situation we face and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding which will guard our heats and minds  through Christ Jesus  (Philippians 4:7).

I have had many fearful moments with my children (I know what panic is when things go pear-shaped), but facing fear head-on (with God) makes us stronger and builds our faith. In fact I think we all need to tackle our fears (rather than hiding) as it is through these trails we grow in Christ and we see Him working in our lives.


When we feel as if fear is taking grip of us, we need to spend time in prayer and quiet worship with our Heavenly Father, as even in the darkest hour, He is ALWAYS with us.


Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.

Psalm 56:3


Comments

  1. Do you mean co-exsist?

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  2. Oh my goodness! This is me. I am so fearful even though I have experienced God's faithfulness and provision in so many ways. I'm looking forward to reading the other blog posts you linked at the bottom.

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    1. This is a huge problem for many christian mothers and a real test of our faith - we can not worry and in the same breath say we have complete faith in God - something to keep on working on!!

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  3. Trusting God for a redeemed imagination so that I will not let my mind dwell on the what if's. I continually have to remind myself: "whatever things are true, whatever things are lovely, . . . just, pure, honest, of good report -> and to THINK ON THESE THINGS!

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    1. I agree - what ifs are so bad and damaging. I do love that verse :)

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  4. Very thought provoking. Of course there is unreasonable fear and being responsible for the well-being of children. My grandkids are not going to be allowed to play on the street because God is watching out for them.

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    1. There is fear - which is ofter irrational and then there is being practical with safety and that is quite different.

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  5. It is so hard to balance this idea of caring well for our kids and hovering or worrying. And I do believe it is a balance. I do think there is worry and there is hovering (which can be do different beasts). The worry is a heart issue...the hovering often stems from worry. God can show us more of who He is through both.

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    1. My children are now adults and I will admit it did take some time to learnt to not fret and worry when they were out of my sight. My son ride a power motor bike and it does concern me but worrying and being fearful isn't going to make any differences. I must leave it all in the Lords hands.

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  6. My favourite go-to verse when I am tempted to fear is 2 Timothy 1:7 - "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind". What a reminder - fear is NOT from God (in fact, our adversary the devil LOVES it when we fear - he feels victorious - what a sober thought)! In fact, what God gives us is the exact opposite of fear! I think especially the sound mind reminds me what He gives - people are not sound-minded when they are fearful! But the love and power are also important because love reminds us that God cares and power gives us the courage and strength when we are tempted to fear. :)
    Yes. Fear is definitely something to guard against and your post is a fantastic reminder. Thank you Jo!

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    1. Our first reaction to so many things is to panic and fear the worst. But for some people that fear just grows and grows and gets out of control. I think the moment fear hits us we should reach for our Bibles that should put an end to a panic attacks and worry. I really think it is something we have to work on this our entire lives as trusting God doesn't come naturally as it really should. Funnily we completely trust our safety belts in our cars more than we trust God .

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    2. Yes, we trust a LOT of things more than we trust God - it's sad, really.

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