fear not

"It's fear that makes us do those slightly crazy, often inappropriate things. Fear that blurts out thoughtless, sometimes hurtful words. Because fear babbles. It freaks out. It searches frantically for explanations and solutions. It races around trying to fix things or, at the very least, figure things out....
For you see, difficulties can't separate us from God - only fear can. And fear in its purest form is really unbelief, the false conviction that 'God can't, God won't...so I must.' Faith on the other hand, chooses to believe that 'God can, God wants to, and God will...so I choose to trust Him with my life.' Can fear and faith coexist in the same person? Of course they can...and they do. As long as we live on earth, flesh-fed fear retains an influence. But the more we persist in faith, obeying God and opening our hearts to His love, the weaker fear becomes....
On those difficult, overwhelming days when I'm struggling with fear- when the waves of my failure obliterate my awareness of God's perfect love - I make a conscious choice to both repent and then believe I am forgiven in spite of what I feel. And not just forgiven, but cherished. Beloved. Protected. Held close with a love that far surpasses anything we could ever experience here on earth. "
-Joanna Weaver

"And so we know and rely on the love God has for us." 1 John 4:16