Devotions

What do you fear?

I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.” [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.] – John 16:33 (AMP)

The Unreasonable Fear

Our mother had a small dog, and my younger sister was very afraid of it. Whenever she visited Mom, she would request that the dog be kept away in its cage. She would wait in her car until it was taken away before coming in - and I must confess, I often did the same! But for her five-year-old son, the same dog was a playmate. They would run around the compound together; the dog would jump on him, and he would carry it around without fear.

One day, when my sister thought the dog was away, she came out of the car, and the dog came running toward her. She screamed, ran, and then fell, overwhelmed by fear. Her husband, who witnessed the scene, smiled and jokingly said, “One day Jayce will threaten you with that dog. He will hold it before you and say, ‘Swear that you will never slap me again,’ and you will do whatever he asks!”

When Fear Becomes a Master

I have realized that many people fear all kinds of harmless things: animals, insects, rats, bats, spiders, and more. Yet when we look closely at life, many of the things people fear are also harmless or exaggerated in their minds. It is true that a healthy measure of caution has its place. “Courage is not the absence of fear, it is acting in spite of fear,” as Carly Fiorina said, and “the brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear,” as Nelson Mandela observed. A certain amount of fear can keep us from exposing ourselves to unnecessary danger, and at times it can even push us to work hard and find solutions.

The problem begins when fear controls us. Most of the time, fear is ungrounded, yet it paralyzes people and takes away their capacity to act, dream, or move forward. Fear of the future, fear of rejection, fear of sickness, fear of failure, or fear of not making it can cripple people and pin them down, preventing them from soaring high. Though life’s circumstances may create fear in human hearts, Christians do not have to live as slaves to fear. Jesus has conquered all. What, then, is left for us to fear? Tribulation, distress, suffering, and every tragedy have already been overcome in Him.

Fear Opposes Faith and Magnifies Evil

I used to think Revelation 21:8 was too severe. The Bible says, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and the murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death” – Revelation 21:8 (KJV). I wondered how God could place the fearful, or the cowardly, in the same list as idolaters, murderers, and people who commit all kinds of abominations.

Then the Holy Spirit helped me understand that fear stops the work of God and advances the kingdom of darkness. Fear is the opposite of faith; it diminishes God’s power in our eyes and magnifies evil. And without faith, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). This is why the wicked servant who received one talent was severely punished for the fact that he wasted the Master’s resources because of ungrounded fear. Like in my sister’s story with the dog, Satan will threaten you with your fear and use it to make you do things you never wanted to do. He will push you to compromise, give up without a fight, or sit paralyzed instead of using the talent God has placed in you.

Reign over Fear

There is one more thing about fear: it is contagious. When you walk in the company of the fearful, you can begin to think and speak like them. Their fear can erode your faith little by little. This is why, before Israel went out to battle, the officers had to ask, “Is anyone afraid or fainthearted? Let him go home so that his fellow soldiers will not become disheartened too” (Deuteronomy 20:8).

The way to fight fear is to remind yourself of Jesus’ victory. Walk with people who believe in victory, confess victory, and live by faith. Speak what God has said, not what fear is saying. Take a closer look at what terrifies you, and you may discover that it is only a chained lion, like God revealed to John Bunyan in The Pilgrim’s Progress. So let nothing hold you back. Be courageous. Soar high.

Posted : Sep 14, 2026