Category Archives: Fear

Christian Living, Fear

Ashamed or Rejoicing?

“But if anyone suffers as a “Christian,” he should not be ashamed but should glorify God in having that name.” (1 Peter 4:16)

The name “Christians” was originally used by heathens to ridicule those who were Christ followers.  The word “Christian” literally means, follower of Christ.  So, then, the Christian religion was not about learning and following a series of doctrines, but about following Christ, the Messiah, in words and deeds.  When a person was called a Christian it was because they spoke and acted like Jesus.  The heathens had no idea that what was meant to offend, became a badge of honor.

Today, it appears as if many of us who call ourselves Christinas in private and around other Christians, prefer not to known as Christians in public because they fear ridicule and persecution by present day heathens.  There seems to be shame associated with being a Christian.  We willfully and intentionally try to hide the fact that we are Christ followers from everyone who is not a Christian to the point that we blend in with the heathen.

But in today’s verse, God, through the Apostle Peter, teaches us a great lesson.  He teaches us that if we suffer ridicule, or persecution, for being Christians, we should not be ashamed, but be proud and glorify God because we bear the name of Christ.  We should rejoice in the fact that we are deemed worthy to be “dishonored” and suffer on behalf of Christ’s name:

“Then they went out from the presence of the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to be dishonored on behalf of the Name.” (Acts 5:41 HCSB).”

Jesus taught us Who the only Person is we should fear and why we should fear Him:

“And I say to you, My friends, don’t fear those who kill the body, and after that can do nothing more. But I will show you the One to fear: Fear Him who has authority to throw people into hell after death. Yes, I say to you, this is the One to fear! (Luke 12:4-5).”

So, then, are you ashamed to be known as a Christian?  Do you fear ridicule, persecution, and/or death at the hands of heathens? Or are you proud to bear the name of Christ?  If you are ashamed, then you don’t know Him.  If you want to know Him, let me know in a comment below.

In Christ’s love,

Phil Covone

Fear, Hope, Jesus, Joy, Love, Peace, Strength, Tests

No Fear!

“Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction or anguish or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?” (Romans 8:35 HCSB)

If we are Christians, is there any reason for us to live in fear?  Is there anything that can separate us from the love of Christ?  Is there anyone who can separate us from the love of Christ?  ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!

Here’s the reason why (read the entire passage):

“As it is written: Because of You we are being put to death all day long; we are counted as sheep to be slaughtered. No, in all these things we are more than victorious through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that not even death or life, angels or rulers, things present or things to come, hostile powers, height or depth, or any other created thing will have the power to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord! (Romans 8:36-39).”

As Christians, this passage should strengthen us, empower us, encourage us, and eradicate all fear from within us!  So then,

  • how will we obey today’s Scriptures?
  • With whom will we share today’s Scriptures?
  • With whom will we share the story of our salvation and the story of what Jesus has done for us?

In Christi’s love,

Phil

 

Encouragement, Faith, Fear, Hope, Peace, Promises

Troubled?

“Your heart must not be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me.”                   (John 14:1 HCSB)

As the time grew near for Jesus to be crucified, His disciples grew more and more concerned that they would be left alone.  All of a sudden, after following Jesus faithfully for three years, they are facing His departure.  They didn’t know what would become of them since their master and friend would no longer be with them to teach them and show them what to do.  Jesus knew this, and beginning in today’s verse of Scripture, He delivers to them one of the greatest messages, ever.  It is a message of hope and joy, not only for them, but for all of us today.

How many of us are feeling that Jesus is far away from us?  If we are Christians and feel that way, it’s because we walked away from Him, not Him from us.  Sadly, many of us Christians live as if Jesus is a liar, even though we know He is not.  Let’s let today’s verse remind us of where, and in whom, we must put our faith.

  1. “Your heart must not be troubled.” – Jesus is telling us not to let our hearts be troubled because there is Someone whom we can count on, Someone who will never betray us, Someone who will never leave us, nor forsake us, Someone who already knows and feels what we’re going through. There is Someone who loves us unconditionally, no matter how bad we may think we are, or have been, Someone who will cary us through our hardest, loneliest, and most painful times.
  2. “Believe in God;” – the God of the Old Testament delivered the Israelites from their Egyptian captors. Then, as they spent forty years traveling through the dessert to the land He had promised them, He protected them from all those who tried to destroy them, and through miracles, He supplied their every need.
  3. “believe also in Me.” – Jesus reveals to them that He is that very same God, only in the flesh (John 1:14).  Therefore, they should put all their faith and trust in Him, as they did in the God that they had always heard about.  God did not forsake their ancestors, Jesus would not forsake them, nor will He forsake us today.

 

Now, here’s what Jesus wants us to believe and never forget, because this is our hope and our unspeakable joy:

“In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if not, I would have told you. I am going away to prepare a place for you. If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come back and receive you to Myself, so that where I am you may be also. You know the way to where I am going (John 14:2-4 HCSB).”

Jesus did not leave us as orphans, He promised the He would return for us so that where He is, right now, we will also.  In the mean time, we are not to throw our hands up and give up.  On the contrary, we are to, by faith in Him and His Word, persevere in faith until He returns for us.

 “But the one who endures to the end will be delivered (Matthew 24:13 HCSB).”

Difficult circumstances are not evidence of God’s absence, but an opportunity to demonstrate our faith in His promises.  Is your heart troubled?  Do you want peace and joy?  Let me know in a comment below.

In Christ’s love,

Phil Covone

Christian Living, Encouragement, Fear, Obedience, Promises

No Fear

“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

If we have recognized and accepted God as our Lord and Savior, there must be NO FEAR in us.  Yet, many of us who say that we have put all our faith and trust in God, live in constant fear.  This is a contradiction.  We either believe and trust in the fact that God is Omniscient (there are no limits to His knowledge and wisdom), Omnipotent (there are no limits to His power), and Omnipresent (there no place where His presence is not), or we don’t.  We are either all-in, or all-out.  We either fully believe and trust Him, or we don’t.

Fear is evidence of our lack of trust in our Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent God.  God has never, does not now, nor will He ever, break His promises.  So, when God says that He will give us the strength to continue on during our hardest and most trying times, and will sustain us during the pressures of everyday living, HE WILL DO IT!  However, He will not do it for those who refuse to put the full measure of their faith and trust in Him.  Look at what He is telling us through the Prophet Isaiah:

“You will keep the mind that is dependent on You in perfect peace, for it is trusting in You.” (Isaiah 26:3)

Are you a Christian who struggles with fear?  Could it be that it’s because your relationship with God is fractured because you have been focused on your problems instead of on the Problem Solver?  When Jesus called Peter out of the boat onto the stormy waters of the Sea of Galilee, Peter, putting all his faith and trust in Jesus, got out of the boat and started walking on water towards Jesus who was walking on the Sea of Galilee.  However, when he took his eyes off of Jesus to focus on the stormy water under his feet, Peter began to sink and drown (Matthew 14:22-33).  Something came between he and Jesus that caused him to sink and fear came over him, again.  His fear of the stormy water became greater than his faith in Christ, who had caused him to walk on water, and who moments later, calmed the stormy sea.

If this is you and you want to live in the perfect peace of God, remember what Jesus said and promised us:

“So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you (Matthew 6:31-33).”

If we commit to striving to live in immediate, radical, costly obedience to His commands, God will provide everything we need.  We will live in complete and perfect peace.  Would you like for your peace to be restored?

  1. Ask God to forgive you for focusing on your problems, instead of Him.
  2. Ask God to give you the strength to continue focused on growing your faith in Him.
  3. Ask God to sustain you through the pressures of your life.

Will you do it?  “Do what He says, and watch what He does.”

In Christ’s love,

Phil Covone

Christian Living, Fear, Peace

Descansemos en el Señor

Como Cristianos, debemos descansar en quieta expectativa en que Dios nos salvará de las personas malvadas en nuestras vidas, que nos quieren hacer daño.

Dios, por medio del Profeta Moisés, nos dice:

“Jehová peleará por vosotros, y vosotros estaréis tranquilos (Éxodo‬ ‭14:14‬ ‭RVR1960‬‬).”

Todos tenemos gente en nuestras vidas que quieren hacernos daño, no solamente daño físico, sino daño espiritual, emocional, y financiero. A veces parece ser que nos rodean y atacan todos a la misma vez, dejándonos con el sentir de no tener ayuda, ni esperanza. Muchos estamos sufriendo profundamente por estos ataques. Pero, no tiene que ser así.

He descubierto que la mayoría de mi sufrimiento a sido porque he tratado de pelear batallas que no puedo ganar, batallas que no son mías para pelear. No permití que Di s me protegiera al pelear mis batallas por mi. Me he dado cuenta que mi orgullo, autosuficiencia, y falta de fe en la Omnisciencia, Omnipotencia, y Omnipresencia de Dios, me ha causado estorbar a Dios cuando El me a querido esconder y proteger de los malvados que me quieren hacer daño.

Dios, por medio del Profeta Isaías nos dice:

“Ninguna arma forjada contra ti prosperará, y condenarás toda lengua que se levante contra ti en juicio. Ésta es la herencia de los siervos de Jehová, y su salvación de mí vendrá, dijo Jehová (Isaías‬ ‭54:17‬ ‭RVR1960‬‬),”

Como Cristianos, Dios espera que tengamos y demostremos la clase de fe que el Rey David tenía. El Rey David dijo:

“Si anduviere yo en medio de la angustia, tú me vivificarás; Contra la ira de mis enemigos extenderás tu mano, Y me salvará tu diestra (Salmos‬ ‭138:7‬ ‭RVR1960‬‬).”

¿Como es que Dios nos dice que podemos tener esa quieta paz mientras enfrentamos la maldad que nos rodea?

“Tú guardarás en completa paz a aquel cuyo pensamiento en ti persevera; porque en ti ha confiado.” (Isaías‬ ‭26:3‬ ‭RVR1960‬‬)

Al pensar en las Escrituras d hoy,
– ¿Como obedeceremos las Escrituras de hoy?
– ¿Con quien compartiremos lo que hemos aprendido en las Escrituras de hoy?
– ¿Con quien compartiremos la historia de nuestra salvación, y la historia de lo que Jesucristo ha hecho por nosotros?

Escriban sus respuestas, y luego, hagan lo dicen.

En el amor de Cristo,

Philip “Felipe”

Encouragement, Fear, Peace

Rest in the Lord

As Christinas, we must rest in the quiet expectation that God is going to deliver us from the evil people, in our lives, who want to do us harm.

“The Lord will fight for you; you must be quiet.” (Exodus 14:14)

We all have people in our lives who we know want to do us some kind of harm, not just physical harm, but spiritual, emotional, and financial harm, as well.  At times they seem to surround and attack us all at once, leaving us feeling hopeless and helpless.  Many of us may be suffering, deeply, from these kind of attacks, right now.  But, we don’t have to.

I have found that most of my suffering has come because I’ve tried to fight battles I know I cannot win, battles that were never meant for me to fight. I didn’t allow God to protect me as He fights these battles for me.  I have come to realize that pride, self-reliance, and lack of faith in God’s Omniscience, Omnipotence, and Omnipresence cause me to get in His way when He wants to shield and protect me from the evil ones trying to harm me.

God, through the Prophet Isaiah, says:

“No weapon formed against you will succeed,
and you will refute any accusation
raised against you in court.
This is the heritage of the Lord’s servants,
and their righteousness is from Me.”
This is the Lord’s declaration (Isaiah 54:17).””

As Christians, God expects us to have, and demonstrate, the kind of faith King David did. Kind David said:

“If I walk into the thick of danger,
You will preserve my life
from the anger of my enemies.
You will extend Your hand;
Your right hand will save me (Psalms 138:7).”

How does God say we can be at quiet peace as we face the evil that surrounds us?

“You will keep the mind that is dependent on You
in perfect peace, for it is trusting in You.” (Isaiah 26:3)

So, as we think about today’s Scriptures,

  • how will we obey today’s Scriptures?
  • With whom will we share today’s Scriptures?
  • With whom will we share the story of your salvation, and the story of what Jesus has done for us?

Write the answers down, and then, go do it!

In Christ’s love,

Phil

Christian Living, Fear, Freedom, Obedience, Peace

Who Is Protecting You?

“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)

Why do so many Christians live in fear?  Do we really believe that God is Omniscient (all knowing), Omnipotent (there is nothing God can’t do), and Omnipresent (present in all places, at all times)? God was not created, therefore, He alone is the most powerful Being that exists.  He is Lord over all created things, including good and evil.  If we truly believe this is true, then why do we live in such fear?

If we are Christians, our salvation is guarded by God Himself and no one can snatch our salvation away from us:

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one (John 10:27-30).”

So, no matter what we may suffer while we are still on this earth, we are protected by the fact that we have secured our place in heaven, for all eternity, where there will be no more suffering, of any kind, and no more evil to cause us harm.  Jesus reminds us that we have but one Person to fear:

“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matthew 10:28).”

God, through the Apostle Paul, tells us that our war is not against each other, but against the forces of evil, the evil that has penetrated the human heart:

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:10-12).”

This next verse should make us drop all fear, jump for joy, and fill us with eternal hope:

“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! (James 2:19).”
So, if we believe that God is on our side and that Satan and his demons know God and tremble at the mere mention of His holy name, why, then, should we live in fear?  The best way to show God that we believe that He is our one and only Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent God, is to live in immediate, radical, and costly obedience to His commands.
So, then,
  • How will we obey today’s Scriptures?
  • With whom will we share today’s Scriptures?
  • With whom will we share our salvation stories and the story of what Jesus has done for us?

In Christ’s Love,

Phil