“But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.”
(Matthew 1:20 NIV)
“When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.”
(Matthew 1:24 NIV)
The scriptures say that Joseph did what the angel of the Lord commanded him. But what did the angel command him? He commanded Joseph not to be afraid. Joseph's obedience to that command resulted in Joseph taking Mary home as his wife. The obstacle to Joseph doing the right thing was his own fear. Once he acted in faith and obedience, he overcame that fear.
What are the actions in my life that the Lord wants me to take, but which I shun because of fear?As a leader, do I implement actions, policies and procedures that are predicated on fear or those that promote faith and obedience?
Lord, help me to overcome fear. Guard me from making decisions based on fear. Help me to be able to say to people, "do not fear". I know that the ultimate slayer of fear is your very presence. Help me to always be aware of You.
As of late, this topic of fear has been on my mind as well.
ReplyDeleteThanks Al! Those are some great thoughts!
ReplyDelete