"What Are You Afraid Of?"

Scripture: “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe.”- Proverbs 29:25, NIV

One of the most asked questions we get when we grew up and even today is what are you afraid of? Some of the answers include flying in an airplane, afraid of failing, afraid of disappointing your loved ones, spiders and other insects, and swimming to name a few things. Usually, when you are afraid of things, you do what you can to avoid them. If your family plans a trip to the beach and you are afraid of the ocean/water, you go to the beach, but you never make your way to the water. If truth were told, in the spirit realm, we are just as afraid as well. We are at times, afraid of the enemy, afraid of his vices, and other things. On today, I serve notice to the enemy and the "enemy inside of each of you" that there's no need to be afraid! God did not give you a spirit of fear! He gave you a sound mind, love, and power! Within today's text, we are going to obtain further clarity on what happens when you are afraid and what happens when you know that God has your back.

In closing out this week's set of devotionals, the Father has guided us to the book of Proverbs. This particular book is a group of clichés and wise sayings put together by the wisest king of all-time, Solomon. Throughout his forty year reign as king of Israel, God allowed Solomon to learn a lot and because of that, Solomon left us some wisdom and encouragement from his life's lessons. Today's main scripture is no exception.

Solomon opens up today's main scripture by saying, "Fear of man will prove to be a snare". What a powerful and yet true statement! If truth were told, we have all been afraid of man, in one form or another. Whether it is you asking your supervisor for a day off or talking to your parents about something or stepping up to a person who has rubbed you the wrong way or approaching your pastor about an idea God gave you, we all have been afraid! If you think about those times of you being afraid, you found yourself trapped. Trapped in the sense of figuring out which way to go or who do I run to in this situation and the list goes on and on. God wants you to know, on today, do not be afraid of man! David, Solomon's father, gave us great advice about fearing man. He tells us in Psalms 118:6 that "The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do unto me?" Ladies and gentlemen, man cannot do ANYTHING to you as long as you carry the Lord with you! When you do not, your fear will become a snare or trap. It's time to break free of the traps of life! How can we break free and stop our internal/external fear of man?

The conclusion of this text provides the answer. The text is completed by saying, "but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe". A simple solution, but yet hard to implement, correct? In our flesh, the answer is yes. Many a time, we want to be the hero and solve the mystery and figure everything out. However, the last time I checked, God did not need me nor you to stick our noses in HIS business! In our spiritual walk and even every day walk, the answer to this question should be no. Why? Because if we trust the Lord, then we get out the way! We leave well enough alone and we say, "God, You have this situation and I will sit back!" Some of our greatest blessings come when we trust God! When we trust God, according to Solomon, we will be kept safe. Do you realize the times you could not pay a bill and yet your utilities stayed on until you could? It's because He kept you safe! Do you realize when that man/woman broke your heart and yet you lived life without any problems? It's because God kept you safe! Do you realize that through the scars and hurts from "church folk" that you are able to stand and smile? It's because God kept you safe! It's NOTHING you done, but it's because of God, His safety, and your trust in Him! I even hear Solomon back in Chapter 3 of Proverbs saying to us "Trust in the Lord with ALL thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding!" Ladies and gentlemen, it's a must to trust God 100%, not 50%, and not 75%, but ALL the way, in ALL aspects of our lives! When you do that, He will continue to keep you safe!

In closing, many of us have fears, but do not let man be one of them. They cannot place you in Heaven nor Hell. They cannot condemn you and cannot judge you. Only God can judge you and what He wants you to do is stop fearing man or anything else. He wants us to trust Him and He'll be our safety. Don't you want safety in your life on today? If so, lose your fear of man and increase your trust in God!