This is easier said than done. We care more about people we are able to see and whose voices echo on a daily basis whether verbally or digitally. What will they think of me? What will they say? We hyper focus on those wonders instead of doing what we are really supposed to do. Our fear of fellow man is a limiting factor to our progression.

Why are you doing what you are doing right now? Is it for the applause of man? Is it to be part of a trend or is it really what you are meant to be busy with right this moment? 

We are so fearful of the opinions of mere mortals that are also trying to figure out life like the rest of us. As a result of this fear, people pleasing often sets in. We go to lengths of doing anything simply to keep people happy even at the expense of our own integrity. We do not want to make them angry, and we do not want to be in their bad books so we keep up the show. The toxic ‘cancel’ culture also promotes this. For social acceptance, we would do anything. 

The fear of God is not the same fear that we experience over our phobias or the fear we had as children, having done something wrong and waiting for a beating from a parent. The fear of God is one of reverence. To regard Him with feelings of respect and awe not only of who He is in His very nature but of what He has done for us and what He is able to do in our lives. John Bevere puts it this way: “The fear of God is not being afraid of Him. It is to be afraid of being separated from Him.”

To fear God means living to please Him, doing His will. It means including Him in all our plans. It also means obeying His commands. In essence it just means that we actually care about what God has to say about anything and everything pertaining life. There is no anxiety in fearing God. On the contrary there is peace, security and deep satisfaction.

A simple way to find out which fear drives us is to screen our motives. Why are we doing what we are doing OR why are we not doing what we are not doing? The answers to those questions will give a hint.

The fear of the Lord appears countless times in scripture and one post cannot do justice to the subject. I hope you can take time to read on it. Here are a few scriptures:  Proverbs 1:7; Proverbs 9:10; Ecclesiastes 12:13; Psalms 25:12-14

Be wise: fear the Lord, not man.