Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

“And he was in the stern sleeping on the cushion, and they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, is it not a concern to you that we are perishing?” And he woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Be quiet! Be silent!” And the wind abated and there was a great calm. And he said to them, “Why are you fearful? Do you not yet have faith?”“

Mark 4:38-40

Being alone is one of the great fears of human beings. We were created to be with one another (Genesis 2:18) and to be in fellowship with Adonai (Genesis 3:8). We are complete when we have a helper, companion, and partner – unless we were blessed with a solo calling (1 Corinthians 7:25-28). We are FULFILLED when we are in fellowship with Adonai and able to stand boldly in Jesus whenever He draws near to us (Hebrews 4:16). But what if we don’t FEEL like He is drawing near? What if we FEEL like He is asleep and totally unaware of everything that’s happening to us? What if we FEEL like He is exhausted and we’re on our own? Ruach HaKodesh is there to remind us of our reminder: He’s ALWAYS there.

Deuteronomy 31:8; Hebrews 13:5; Joshua 1:5; Matthew 28:20; Isaiah 41:10; John 14:18; Psalm 94:14. We see the theme throughout scripture. Adonai is WITH us and Adonai will NOT leave us. This is the promise. This is the reality. But we cannot always SEE nor FEEL the presence of Adonai. We’re not called to have Him in our lives that way all the time. We are called to a life of TRUSTING Him and that means that our SPIRITUAL reality does not need to conform to our PHYSICAL senses. “because we are not looking at what is seen, but what is not seen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is not seen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). This isn’t easy for us to do. We are trained and we train ourselves from the beginning of our lives to SEE things. When our eyes don’t work we rely on other methods to SEE things physically (such as learning to see from touch). SEEING is very important to us. When we’ve trained ourselves to be physically sight dependent, it can be a challenge to see through our spiritual sense. Ruach HaKodesh is there to remind us of our reminder: He’s ALWAYS there.

Jesus was WITH the disciples physically, but He was not with them in any other way. They were SEEING the storm and panicking. He was asleep because He DIDN’T see the storm. Exhausted, He had collapsed in the bottom of the boat for much needed physical restoration. His SPIRIT, however, was firmly headed to the other side of the water like the Father had told Him to. It was a reality. It was a given. He WAS going. He never doubted that the physical world would conform to that spiritual reality. Adonai had told Him that He was going, therefore He WAS going. If the storm wanted to rebel, it would be put in its place. Ruach HaKodesh was THERE with Jesus. The power of the Father right there ready to do the Father’s will. The storm was set against the Father’s will. It HAD to stop so that the Father’s will would come to pass. Jesus trusted in the Father’s word to Him about what was going to happen (Jesus WOULD cross the water). His trust was complete. He knew if He needed to get involved He would, but the disciples were there and they too had been given that word of the Father. Jesus was secure.

The disciples were not. They got too caught up in the physical circumstances. Their situation had turned into a problem. Fear was rising, not trust. When their eyes went to the physical world, they got a physical response. Jesus’ eyes were on the spiritual world, and He got a spiritual response. It is all where we have our eyes. Ruach HaKodesh is there to remind us of our reminder: He’s ALWAYS there. Which means He ALWAYS is available to correct our sight lines. He is ALWAYS there to point to where Jesus is. He is ALWAYS there to show us all that Adonai is doing RIGHT NOW for us. The physical circumstances don’t matter. Our physical condition doesn’t matter. The reality of who we are in the Spiritual Realm (who we are in Jesus) and what is happening from Adonai’s point of view is what will determine what will happen. As long as we are willing to cooperate with Him, we will be part and parcel of the Father’s will coming to pass. If we choose to refuse, He will let us. But it would be foolish. Adonai’s perspective is the only unadulterated objectively true perspective that exists. He is the ONLY one able to tell us exactly what is what and when.

Jesus is not asleep at the wheel. He is beyond exhaustion or a need to restore Himself. Jesus is not ignoring us. He is right beside us EVERY step of the way. Jesus is not ignoring us. He is listening to our words and interacting with our prayers. We need to see Him – Ruach HaKodesh ALWAYS points Him out. We need to hear Him – Ruach HaKodesh ALWAYS tells us what Jesus is saying. We need to obey Him – Ruach HaKodesh is ALWAYS telling us the Father’s will and will ALWAYS correct our path IF we will listen and obey what we hear from Him (John 10:27-28). Jesus told us all this stuff and Ruach HaKodesh will remind us of all of it. That’s why HE never leaves us. We are part of Jesus’ life. He is part of ours. Ruach HaKodesh is the bridge that reminds us of what we cannot currently SEE and what we are currently not FEELING. Neither of those things are important. What is important is our TRUST in Jesus’ words and our BELIEF that He is trustworthy. If you ever doubt that, Ruach HaKodesh is ALWAYS there to remind us of our reminder: Jesus will NEVER leave and NEVER forsake and is ALWAYS there. We can take that to heart. It is TRUTH.

Daily Affirmation of the Goodness of Elohim: Psalm 94:14

“For Yahweh will not abandon his people, nor forsake his inheritance.” When you’re a parent, you want to help your kids. Especially when they are little, but really at ANY age. Sometimes you can’t see how it is you can help them, but the desire is always there. Because you love them. You want them not to struggle more than they have to. You don’t want to do everything for them, but you want to bless them. To assist them. To take a burden off of them, or at least to help them carry it. Adonai is the same way. He is DEDICATED to us. He wants the BEST for us. He wants us BLESSED on top of being BLESSED. He will NEVER abandon us and ALWAYS seeks to help us. Because He LOVES us. Because He CHERISHES us. Because He wants to ease our burdens and take our cares. Not to do everything for us, but to give us the abundant life (John 10:10) that He planned for us from the beginning. He wants to LOVE on us. What a GOOD God!

Your Daily Confession of Elohim’s Goodness:

I taste and see that Yahweh is good; I am blessed because I take refuge in Him.

Psalm 34:8