Do you have any fear in your life today about anything in particular? I want to encourage you to overcome fear, knowing that true triumph comes only through faith. Faith is like the antidote for fear. And every time fear comes knocking on your door, you send faith to answer. And you know, today, there are so many things that people can be afraid of. But this is a great opportunity to ramp up our faith and put our faith in God. One of the things that you can do every time you start to feel afraid is say out loud, ‘God, I put my trust in you.’ Faith is a force that is on the inside of your spirit, but it has to be released. It is released through praying, through saying, or through doing.
Ephesians 6: “This is a chapter about spiritual warfare and how you can defeat the enemy by putting on the armor that God gives you to wear. Thank God, He does not leave us defenseless.”
He always shows a way that you can have victory because God’s will for you is to have victory. He wants you to enjoy your life. He wants you to enjoy him. He wants you to enjoy everything that he gives you. But fear is a thief. It makes people miserable, keeps them from making progress, and keeps them from enjoying anything.
And I know there are surely people reading this note who have fear in some area of their lives. Perhaps you have financial problems, or you are fearful about your marriage or children. There are so many things today that are going on that really are not good.
And the Bible actually tells us that in the last days, men’s hearts will fail them for fear. So, we have to stand against fear. We need to do something about it when it comes.
1) Put on the armor of God
Ephesians 6:13: “ in the amplified Bible, says, ‘therefore put on God’s complete armor.”
‘Put on’ are action words. I always say, ‘I put my clothes on every day.’ I have never, one time, gone into my closet, just stood there and had my clothes jump on my body. If I put on something and it does not look good, I take it off, and I put on something else.
And we need to realize that God has given us armor, but he says, ‘Put it on.’ Therefore, put on God’s complete armor that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day of danger. You know Satan is our enemy. He’s never going to leave us alone. We have periods of time where he may leave us alone, but he always waits for an opportunity to come back and attack us again.
2) Satan keeps watching; you need to pray and fast
During 40 days and nights, when Jesus was in the wilderness being tempted by the enemy, he defeated him. But at the very end, it says, ‘Satan went away to wait for a more opportune time.’
Even though you got a victory last time, that does not mean that the enemy is never going to come back and tempt you again. I do not know if you have realized this yet, but I have realized that every storm is not in the forecast.
I can get up and think, ‘I am going to have a great day, and I have got a plan, and everything’s going to be splendid,’ and then, all of a sudden, things go awry. Sometimes, those unexpected problems are the ones that can cause us the most fear. That is why we need to pray on a regular basis. We need to spend time with God. We need to realize that we do have an enemy and his purpose is to make us miserable.
3) Lift up and Tighten the belt of truth
The Bible actually says that fear has torment. I grew up rooted in fear. My father was abusive, mean, and alcoholic, and he just created a lot of fear in our family.
I know what it is like to be afraid, and it took me a lot of years after growing up that way to get over it. I am so glad that I have learned about faith. You have faith but do not realize it. Even when you say, ‘I wish I had more faith,’ you do have faith when you became a child of God.
If you are going to pray anything about faith, pray that you will use your faith because the more you use your faith, the more it will grow and the stronger it will get. That is why, sometimes, God allows us to be in situations where we are forced to use our faith because it is the only way that it will grow. Put on God’s complete armor that you may be able to resist. We have to resist the enemy.
James 4:7: “submit yourself to God, resist the devil, and he will flee.”
If you do not resist him, he will take over. Resist and stand your ground on the evil day of danger.
Ephesians 6:6: “Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one].”
The words I want you to pay attention to are ‘lift up.’ There again, it is like ‘put on;’ it is an action word. It means, ‘I have given you a shield of faith that will cover you and protect you in every situation the enemy brings against you.’ But you have to lift it up: you must release it.
Other pieces of armor that we read about in Ephesians 6, start out by saying, ‘tighten the belt of truth.’ Truth is the word of God. What does it mean to tighten the belt of truth? It means whenever your faith is being tested and when fear is coming against you, you have to hang on to the word of God even tighter than you would at normal times. You may need to spend some extra time in prayer and on his word.
4) Put on the breastplate of righteousness
It says, ‘Put on the breastplate of righteousness.’ Righteousness is a gift given by God to us through the death and the resurrection of Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:21: ‘God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.’
This means that you have been made right with God. Although we all make mistakes, as children of God, He sees us as righteous. We are instructed to put on the breastplate of righteousness, which in battle protects the heart. We must not allow the enemy to influence our hearts with lies.
5) Lead a Life of Peace
Put on the shoes of peace. We are to walk in peace. Do you know that the enemy does not know what to do with you if he is attacking you and you remain in peace? That is challenging to do, but you can learn how to do it. I have learned how to do it. I am learning how to do it. I am always growing in that area. But the more experience you have with God, the easier it becomes to be peaceful in times of turmoil when the enemy would love to make you afraid.
6) Overcome your thoughts
And then it says, ‘Put on the helmet of salvation.’ A helmet covers your head. It refers to our thinking. In a battle, we need to think the way God would think, which is not fearful thoughts but thoughts of faith. Many times, when the enemy is attacking me, I will say things like this, ‘Is going to end well, and I know that God loves me.’ When you are in battle and your circumstances are tough, and it seems unjust and unfair, don’t ever say, “Well, God, don’t you love me?”
God loves you and wants you to be rooted and grounded in his love. He wants you to be so sure of his love for you that nothing can ever separate you from that love. Knowing that God loves you is powerful. When you are in a time of battle, think, ‘God loves me.’ Think, ‘I know this will work out well in the end.’ And think, ‘Whatever I need to go through this, God will give it to me.
The helmet of salvation is that our minds have to be renewed according to the word of God. One of the first thing you need to do after receiving Jesus Christ as your Savior is to learn about the power of your thoughts.
As a man thinks, so does he become. If you want to have faith, you cannot nurture fearful thoughts. But when those thoughts come, you can cast them down and replace them with thoughts of faith, ‘God is for me; he is not against me. God is on my side. I am going to win this victory.’ Regardless of the time it takes, God will provide you with the strength to face and endure it.
7) God is always with us
In challenging times, when you turn to prayer, two powerful outcomes may unfold: God may deliver you from your struggles, or He may grant you the strength and grace to endure them.
During my childhood, I faced abuse and found myself turning to prayer, hoping for deliverance from my circumstances. While I did not receive the rescue I sought, I did experience a journey through those painful times. Through it all, I gained profound insights into the faithfulness of God. Today, I am grateful for the strength and understanding I have earned, which allows me to support and teach others facing similar challenges.
8) Comfort yourself with the word of God
The Bible talks about the sword that the spirit wields, which is the word of God. When you put the word in and when you need that word, the Holy Spirit will bring it out. Often, when I am facing challenges and deep in prayer, the Holy Spirit brings specific scriptures to my mind that provide me with profound comfort and strength during those times.
God is the God of all comfort, and he comforts us. When you see other people in difficulties, you can comfort them as well. Knowing the words of God is so important. That is why the Bible says we are to meditate on the Word.
The word ‘meditate’ is all about diving deep into your thoughts, rolling ideas around in your mind, and even whispering them aloud! Every morning, I embark on a thrilling journey during my prayer time with God, where I passionately explore and vocalize different scriptures. It is a time of reflection and inspiration that truly sets the tone for my day!
If you have been walking with God for a significant time and diving into His Word, you likely know much more than you realize. God will bring those scriptures to your mind when you need them, and you’ll be amazed at how equipped you truly are.
The Bible says let him who has my word speak my word faithfully. There is power in speaking the word of God out loud.
9) Put a prayer cover over yourself
The Bible says, ‘Cover everything with prayer.’ I put a prayer cover over my children most days when I pray. I will call my children by name and say, ‘I cover you with prayer.’ I put a prayer cover over them, and I ask God to protect and keep them healthy. I ask God to draw them into a deeper relationship with Him, to meet their needs, and to guide them on the right path. I pray consistently, using every kind of prayer, and remain watchful with a strong sense of purpose.
Inspired by Joyce Meyer Sermon
