I was going to share from Psalm 97 today, but Jerry Savelle's devotional for today is VERY needful for you!
The Snare
The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe (Proverbs 29:25 NKJV).
The fear of man is one snare that every Christian will have to face and conquer at some point in life. As long as you care more about other people’s expectations and what they think about you than what God’s Word says about you, you will not be free to fulfill God’s call on your life. So, how can you determine if you are ensnared by the fear of man? Let me ask you a few questions:
Do you get depressed when you perceive people are thinking negatively about you?
Do you feel insecure if your Christian peers think you are carnal or that you’ve missed God?
Do you spend hours thinking about how to set the record straight?
Do you always seek to justify your decisions or actions?
Do you feel insecure if your Christian peers think you are carnal or that you’ve missed God?
Do you spend hours thinking about how to set the record straight?
Do you always seek to justify your decisions or actions?
This type of thinking is indicative of a spirit of fear—specifically the fear of man—operating in your life. The fear of man is a form of mental bondage that serves as a snare. It will entrap you with worry and will rob you of the inner peace that is yours in Christ.
Jesus said, “How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?” (John 5:44 NKJV).
In other words, receiving honor from man prevents you from seeking what comes only from God. Instead of caring what others may think of you, cast the care of your situation onto God and then trust Him to sort things out His way. Trusting God will free you from the snare of the fear of man. When you cast off your care and trust God to look after your reputation, insecurity will be a thing of the past. You will no longer need to look to people’s opinion of your for security (after all, their opinions are subject to change).
Who you are in Christ is unchangeable. So release yourself from the snare of the fear of man and put your trust completely in God. When you do, you will enjoy a life of freedom, secure in the knowledge of who you are in Christ.
Confession: I refuse to allow other people’s opinions of my ideas, decisions, and actions to ensnare me and steal my peace. I cast my care on God, knowing that He cares for me and will sort out everything to my benefit. My security is based solely on God’s Word and who He says I am in Christ.
AMEN! This was one of the most important lessons that I had to learn early on. Not only as a born again believer and a disciple of Jesus, but as a minister of the Gospel! There were times when I KNEW that the Spirit of God was moving on me to do something and I would be tempted to wait until someone else got the same "leading". That was NOT right! He made it very clear when He was instructing me to begin to pray every morning for The Spoken Word Church, AT the church! I shared this with a few people and not one was willing to do this with me. When I complained to the Lord about this, He simply asked ME, "What am I telling YOU to do?". So, I began to go to the church from 6AM - 7AM every morning. Within a couple of weeks, people began to join me until we had quite a group! We have been praying at this time, at the Church, every morning since, WITHOUT FAIL! This was 30 years ago. We have been faithful and HE has been even more faithful to answer these prayers. NEVER let the opinions of others cause you to back down from doing something that the Lord your God is calling you to do. YOUR rewards depend on YOUR obedience, TO HIM! AMEN! Here is Hillsong with "Oceans: Where Feet May Fail":Shalom in Him!
