We are likely familiar with these Scripture passages “perfect love casts out all fear” (1 John 4:18). Or “the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 1:7, 9:10). You have possibly heard many messages, maybe even read books about what it means to fear God. It is said that there are at least 360 verses in the Word of God that command us “do not fear.”
In the past few months, I have read several interesting books and various articles about fear. A couple of definitions for fear that struck home for me were: False Evidence Appearing Real; fear is putting faith in the enemy rather than God.
Fear of God is often referred to as reverential awe of God, honoring and respecting Him as our God, our Creator. And on the flip side of this coin, we must add that to fear God is often described as a healthy fear because we understand that violating His Word, His boundaries, or standards always results in discipline from our heavenly Father (Hebrews 12).
I am often asked, how does perfect love out all fear?
What does God’s love have to do with my fear of rejection, failure, disappointment, pain?
We were all created to experience relationships because we need to be loved and give love. But because of past experiences where we have been hurt, rejected, disappointed, we resist love to avoid pain. We even dismiss our dreams because we fear failure. We decide to play it safe rather than take a risk, a journey into the unknown.
I look forward to my quiet time with the Lord each morning, as I am sure you do likewise. During this time, I am listening to hear the heartbeat of my God, His footsteps guiding me as I ask Him for direction about my day.
How does God’s heartbeat or His footsteps sound?
How do I know that I am hearing God and not just my thoughts?
Recently I read this fantastic description of God’s voice and how it sounds. His voice sounds like my voice because the Holy Spirit speaks to me through my conscience as well as through His Word. When I am reading Scriptures, the voice I am hearing is mine reading the text. Give it a try. Open the Word, silently read a passage. Whose voice do you hear?
The voice of God is an intimate experience but not an audible one. It is a voice that comes deep within my soul, not from the outside but the inside. Every conversation I have with God challenges the boundaries of my imagination as I seek to understand how what I am reading is relevant to my day.
God never speaks to you or me without purpose and meaning. He is in the business of transforming our lives into the character of His Son. Hearing His heartbeat and footsteps are always fueled by His love, which transforms you and me and ignites a new passion. We now begin to discover the power and the force of His love in the purest form.
And at the same time, when we follow Him, hear His heartbeat, His footsteps, all of our fears are consumed by one fear: the fear of God, and God only.
Remember, what we fear is what we become subject to – our fears define our master. Where there is no fear, there is no control. When I fear God and God alone, I am no longer bound by all other anxieties that desire to hold me captive — 
the fear of death, failure, rejection, insignificance!
All other concerns become powerless when I know the fear of God!
“Perfect love casts out all fear.” (1 John 4:18) Notice that God does not even control us with fear. I now have the freedom to love and experience freedom from my fears. I have the freedom to live out my dreams.
The more my identity is rooted in God’s value for me, the less I am controlled and limited by what others think of me. The healthier I become, the freer I am to be myself, the unique person God created me to become.
On June 12th, my youngest granddaughter spoke at her high school graduation. She titled her speech Fear of the Unknown. It reads:
“To be completely honest, I was dreading this speech from the moment I found out I had to write it. I wanted to pass under the radar along with everyone else in my class, unnoticed and unseen. But now that I am here, I am going to make the most of these few minutes and give you all some of the hope that I cling on to as we set foot into the vast expanse of opportunity and unknown that lies before us.
It only gets better from here. Any stress from these classes and people will not follow you after this moment. Because of your hard work and dedication to yourselves and everyone around you, you are here today and can radiate with pride that “You did it!”
You have the entire world open to you now. It doesn’t matter how cheesy it sounds, but you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. Yes, it will be scary. Yes, the world is unpredictable, and some of us will never feel prepared enough to jump into it, but don’t be afraid to take those risks. Do not dread failure and rejection because even if you fail, you’ll always wonder what would have happened if you took that leap. The unknown is full of just as much fear as it is triumph, but it is up to you to decide how to act on that knowledge.
I was terrified of this speech, this moment, because it was an unknown. I couldn’t predict it like an algebra problem. I didn’t have a rubric to guide me like an English essay. But I realized that the unknown, no matter how daunting, is whatever we make it to be. It can be the thing that stops you dead in your tracks, hiding behind the curtain for an eternity, waiting to step into the spotlight. Or, it can hold endless possibilities, an adventure that you never dreamed of, winding and turning roads that your life will be taken down.
In short, don’t throw away the incredible time in your life because you are too scared of what might go wrong. After all, worrying about things only means you feel the pain twice.”
And now Martha is preparing to leave for college in a couple of weeks, into her unknown. 
She has prepared for this moment for 13 years, and now she will experience her dreams of becoming a secondary teacher majoring in art education!
What are your dreams, desires, passions? Have you allowed fear to stop you from experiencing all that God desires for you – the purpose for which He created you?
This was awesome. As always our God is making himself known. He is alive and controlling all. This is why we have no fear. Prayer is our biggest asset. We know the end. How awesome is a God that has given us this information so we may have confidence and move forward in HIs love and grace. How grateful we are that He does speak to us through so many ways. I think Martha really hit the nail on the head for our future generation. Love you all and miss you.