CHOOSE FAITH, NOT FEAR

Pr. James Victor Lubwama 

Fear is an acronym expounded as;

F-  False
E - Evidence 
A  -  Appearing 
R -      Real 

Whereas FAITH according to Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV) is described as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" OR as Hebrews 11:1 (TLB) explicates; “the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.”

Satan uses fear to govern people’s lives while God uses Faith. Fear and faith cannot coexist! When fear takes over a person's heart, faith runs away; they can neither sit in the same place (heart) at the same time nor operate at the same time.

The foundation of faith is the Word of God while the foundation of fear are lies of the world. You can't have faith without the word of God. For example if you are believing God to heal you of a sickness, you must have heard a Rhema word regarding the healing you need - for instance, Psalm 103:3-4 (NKJV) which assures that; "Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies," This word forms the foundation of your healing.

When you receive the word of God, it becomes the foundation of your faith because faith comes by hearing the word of God. When you hear someone speak about increase, multiplication, wonders, healing, expansion and you accept the message with your heart and, confess it with your mouth, it becomes operational in your life’s situation. It's the Word that you have heard that pushes you to believe. Romans 10:16-17 (TLB) says; 
‘But not everyone who hears the Good News has welcomed it, for Isaiah the prophet said, “Lord, who has believed me when I told them?” 17 Yet faith comes from listening to this Good News—the Good News about Christ.’

After the Word has been spoken, fear, uncertainty and confusion sneaks in. You start wondering like Mary did when she received the word that she was to give birth to Jesus. Luke 1:34 (ESV) says; "And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” Or like Abraham when he got his word regarding a child. Genesis 17:17 (ESV) “Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” You end up doubting the word and hence giving fear a foothold.

Many times we focus on the surrounding circumstances, we imagine that some prophesies or situations are impossible; we reason that we are too old or not worthy of what has been spoken. But if God has spoken a word, He is also ready to perform what He spoke; He assures us in Psalm 89:34 (NKJV) that; “My covenant I will not break, nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.”

Oswald Chambers, in My Utmost for His Highest, said: "The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty. We can be certain of God, even if we are uncertain of the next step He wants us to take. We can be certain of God's plan for us, even if we are uncertain of the specific details. Even though we're uncertain, we can be confident that God will not disappoint us”

Many times we do certain things in fear; we offer or sow a seeds in order to save our jobs, or get something more in return. We don’t do the above out of obedience but motivated by fear because we anticipate something bad will happen to our family or businesses. You will never see God if you do anything motivated by fear, because God honours actions that are faith driven; anything done out of fear cannot earn you a breakthrough or a blessing!

In order for you to see God in your life, you need to choose faith not fear because He is faithful and will surely perform what he spoke. Jeremiah 1:12 (AMP) says; ‘Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am [actively] watching over My word to fulfill it.”

What God has planned will come to pass. Psalm 33:8-11(NLT) says;
“Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of him. 9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command. 10 The Lord frustrates the plans of the nations and thwarts all their schemes. 11 But the Lord’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.”

Most people are not persevering or courageous. They are so scared and torn in pieces by different life circumstances; they are afraid to get out of their comfort; they are afraid of failure, poverty, death etc. They are not walking confidently by faith but they are just drifting through life enslaved by fear; while some other instead of believing God and his word, they turn to self-help books for redemption. Satan is nothing but a thief, destroyer and deceiver, and he goes around roaring fear, and when we scatter, we end up in the wrong places because of the traps he has set: So when fear roars, its no what you are running from that holds control over you, but its the act of running that pulls you away from God; you become so fear-centred instead of standing on the rock - word of God and trusting Him to help you overcome

The difference between the Bible and self-help books by different moguls, investors, politicians, life coaches and other people who have succeeded in the various fields is that; self-help books often give you a wide perception about an issue. The dos, don’ts and how’s but they don’t give you the power to do it. They are helpful, yes, but they don’t have the power to activate what’s been written. They aren’t alive, but God’s word not only tells you what to do; it gives you the power to do it.

Faith is God’s Word activated. If you’ve ever read a verse in the Bible and all of a sudden thought, I can do this: I can be healed, i can build a house, I will bear children; you’ve just had your faith activated by the Word of God. 

Everyone is haunted by fear at a certain time, but it’s what you do when fear thunders in your mind. When you’re afraid, you will probably respond in one of these ways: to embrace fear; to run from fear; or to face up fear with faith.

Face the reality, discard fear and choose faith!