There are many things we are told as men, on how to be a real man. What is okay to do, and what is unacceptable.  Through out the decades of life, “fear” has been the enemy. It seemed to pop up at all the wrong times. When I would build up enough confidence and strength to oppose it, it would retreat, but I never seemed to totally obliterate it.

When I was a child living in a home of alcoholics, uncertainty fueled fear.  Many times I did not even know what I was fearing, but it was the unknown of how people around me were going to act. One day and time they seem nice, the next bitter and angry.  It was the mystery of wonder the grew into fear. Was I going to be loved, accepted, and encouraged, or yelled at, beaten and condemned.

Whether is was fear as a child in an unsafe home, or as a teenage getting threatened by older kids, or serious accidents in a car. Fear as always been on the sidelines. It seems like when I would glimpse over in search of support, there was fear, making its presence known.

We might not want to discuss fear (because we were told it does not exist and it is bad), but there might be another emotion that is in sheep’s clothing.

Everywhere we look today, we find people living anxious lives. In fact, if we had only one word to describe our society it might be anxious. People aren’t sure whom they can count on. The world seems to be changing rapidly on all fronts. Old moral and ethical standards in our culture seem to have fallen away fairly dramatically in recent years. Parents, stepparents, and foster parents seem to come and go in the lives of an increasing number of children; spouses seem more temporary than permanent in a number of people’s lives. A life in which such fluctuations and changes are the norm is nearly always an anxious life.

Have you experienced times of fear or anxiety? What precipitated those times?

Do you live with a pervasive feeling of anxiety? Have you considered the root causes for this feeling deep within you soul?

Root of Anxiety

Anxiety is fear of the future. We feel anxious when we come to the conclusion that the future holds no promise of change or when we aren’t sure what’s going to happen from one moment to the next.
Sometimes anxiety is rooted in a person’s feelings that he is incapable of handling a new challenge.
At times, anxiety is rooted in a person’s setting standards that are too high, even impossible.
Sometimes anxiety is rooted in a person’s feeling torn between two opinions or between two people she loves.
At times, anxiety is rooted in unresolved hostility.

Jesus knew all about these causes of anxiety. Anxiety over life’s basic needs was a problem when He walked the earth. Jesus lived in an area that was occupied by Rome, and nobody was ever sure what Rome might do next or what new taxes and laws might be issued against the Jews. Daily life was difficult: thousands upon thousands lived a hand-to-mouth, day-to-day existence. Sickness and disease were prevalent. Great tension existed between those who considered themselves to be “Law-keeping” Jews and those who were perceived to be Law-breakers.

This is what Jesus taught His disciples:

²²Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. ²³ For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. ²⁴ Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! ²⁵ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? ²⁶ If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? ²⁷ Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ²⁸ But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! ²⁹ And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. ³⁰ For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. – Luke 12:22-30 ESV

What insights do you have into this passage of Scripture?

As we look closely at what Jesus taught about anxiety, there are three things to note.

1. God knows what we need. Much of our anxiety is rooted in a feeling that we must maintain control over every detail in our lives because there is nobody else whom we can trust to know our needs and to provide for us. Jesus made it very clear, “Your Father knows.” He knows because He cares for us with an infinite love. We are of exceedingly great value to Him.
2. God will supply what we need. Not only does God know what we need, but He knows by what means, when, and precisely how much to supply us so that our need is met fully. He is a loving Father who desires the best for His children, which includes a full provision.
3. Only God can alleviate fully our feelings of anxiety. Nobody else can ever fully know or meet this need in our life. God alone sees the beginning from the ending of our life and, therefore, He alone knows what we will need at precisely every moment of our life in order for us to do the work and fulfill the plan that He has for us.

God will do the providing for us as we trust Him. His part is to meet our needs. Our part is to trust Him to meet our needs.

How are those three areas “real” in your life engagement with anxiety and fear?

It all comes down to the big “S”, surrender. Until Jesus is a part of our life, the LORD, we will always fear the unknown.

Every person has moments of anxiety and fear in his or her life. But a pervasive feeling of anxiousness and fearfulness is not God’s desire for any person. We need to put our faith in what God has done for us by sending Jesus to this earth on our behalf. We need to place our trust in the Holy Spirit to lead us along life’s path with confidence and hope.

There is another alternative

If we choose not to trust God fully with our lives, then we are left with the options of trusting either ourselves or other people with our lives. A person doesn’t need to live very long before he concludes that no one person can fully care for himself, and no other person or institution can be relied upon fully to provide all that any one person needs. Only God, who has all resources available for His use, can put together a “total provision package” for each person on earth.

If we choose not to trust God fully with our lives, the results often include:

• Increased irritability and frustration with life
• A continual vacillation of opinion and little decision making
• Repeated errors of judgment
• Feelings of persecution, even if no persecutor can be named
• Procrastination
• Increased use of chemicals (such as alcohol, drugs, and overuse of prescription medications) to escape pain, sleeplessness, or nervous tension
• Low productivity
• A general feeling of restlessness or uneasiness

Can you relate to any of those conditions. Can you reflect on times when you were challenged in any one of these areas and how it came back to who was on the throne of your life?

Jesus referred to such consequences as these in a parable, saying,

Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed … fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them … Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. (Matt. 13:3–4, 7, 22)

Those things that cause anxiety in us are what Jesus refers to as “the cares of this world.” They choke the Word of God. What does this mean? It means that a person who becomes self-absorbed with situations, circumstances, and self-pursuits is not fully capable of taking into his thoughts and emotions the Word of God. He allows the mundane responsibilities of life to overwhelm him to the point that he gives no thought to God’s promises, much less relies upon them as pertaining to his life.

This week, be alert with your emotions. Pay attention to those results and behaviors above that point to our independence and stubbornness.  Follow the commandment of Jesus where He says to love one another. Reach out to a brother. Spend some time discussing these situations and challenges. Don’t be that guy like I was that fought the battled and looked to the sideline to just see Fear cheering me on.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016).  Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

Stanley, C. F. (1998). Developing inner strength. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.