Our Biggest Fears

If there is something that this past month has shown me, it has to be the fact that Satan knows exactly what our biggest fears and weaknesses are and then he hits them with everything in his arsenal. This can take on a variety of forms, sex, drugs, alcohol, relationships, and anything else imaginable. It is a terrifying prospect.

This past month, I have found that my great weakness is insecurity. I focus way too much on people's opinion of me. Satan knows this and has used this to keep me from being effective for the kingdom. Whether it is my family, close friends, or someone I barely know. What is it about people that make us so afraid? Why do people care about other people's opinions?

People have this unique ability. The ability is to become close to other people and the closer someone is to you, the more potential they have to hurt you. God knows this. When God made Adam he saw that it was not good for man to be alone. So he made Eve to compliment their personalities. But this comes with a cost. The cost is being vulnerable. When someone knows your deep secrets, the things that you want to hide in the darkness and let nobody see, they have this power to reject that which has helped shape you and mold you. When somebody rejects that, they are essentially rejecting who you are and this can be incredibly painful. 

But the opposite end of this spectrum can be pretty awesome. This is when someone who knows your deepest fears and insecurities comes alongside of you and supports you through them. This is what the church is supposed to do. The early church did this. They came alongside of each other every day and worshiped God. People do not spend that much time together without getting to know each other's inner secrets and fears. But they were able to come alongside each other and minister to the world. 

Whatever our deepest fears are, no matter how deep or dark they can be, one of the most painful incidents in the world is being rejected by someone who you thought you could trust. But one of the greatest feelings in the world is knowing that there is someone you can trust and that they can trust you. This is why God calls us to community with each other and not to being solo Christians. This can be painful and it can be one of the hardest things in the world. But in the end, God knows that it is worth it for us and that is why he makes us do it. God never said being a Christian would be easy.