“FEAR!”

Matthew 8:23-27                                            (ESV)

“23 And when HE got into the boat, HIS disciples followed HIM.

24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; BUT HE WAS ASLEEP.

25 And they went and woke HIM, saying, "Save us, LORD; we are perishing."

26 And HE said to them, "Why are you AFRAID, O you of little FAITH?" Then HE rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.

27 And the men marveled, saying, "What sort of MAN is this, that even winds and sea obey HIM?"”

April 9, 2017 marks two years since I was told by a doctor that I needed to have quadruple bypass surgery.  Two days later the surgery was performed and everything went extremely well, I would say with almost ZERO problems.  However, when I my wife and sons were hugging me right before they took me back into surgery, my emotions began to get a little shaky and FEAR of the unknown began to attempt to grip me.

The disciples were in a position that they were certainly NOT unfamiliar with.  Many were fishermen who had spent most of their lives in a boat.  Having a storm blow up had to be something they had experienced before?  But this time was different!  The disciples were relaxed because they were FOLLOWING JESUS (according to verse 23).  Yet their circumstances, the position they found themselves in, caused them to lose sight of WHO they with them as they began focusing on the wind and waves battering their boat.  

“FEAR” of the unknown is something that I would say most of us have to BATTLE to overcome.  Although I understood that I am a child of THE KING OF KINGS, not knowing the outcome of the surgery caused me to “FEAR” the results.  Of course, the results of the surgery were an amazing success and my recovery remarkable.  So why did I “FEAR”?  What was there about the heart surgery that caused me such “FEAR”?  Three weeks later, in a follow-up visit to the surgeons office, he totally released me saying “your numbers are better than anything we were hoping for” and left wishing me the best!  

What did I have to “FEAR”?  JESUS has told me that HE will never leave me, or forsake me (Hebrews 13:5)!  When we take our EYES off of HIM and begin to look at our troubles we are asking for “FEAR” to come and visit us. Hebrews 11:6 says “And without FAITH it is IMPOSSIBLE to please HIM, for whoever would draw near to GOD must believe that HE EXISTS and that HE REWARDS those who seek HIM.”  The opposite of FAITH is “FEAR”.  Seeing how GOD has delivered me through SO many “Red Sea” experiences, how can I have anything but FAITH HE will deliver me, either here on earth, or ultimately to HEAVEN?  “FEAR” has no place with my GOD!!!