The Thing I Feared

“For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.”  (Job 3:25)
 
 What if Job had not greatly feared anything but God?  What if he had not dealt in the ‘what ifs,’ but instead had dwelled on the ‘I know’s?’  What if every time a thought of something bad happening appeared in his mind, he had refocused on God? 

We are prone to dwell on things that may never happen, and most likely never will.   We are prone to dwell on our fears rather than on our faith.  The interesting thing is that both fear and faith require believing.  “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) Fear is the substance of things dreaded, the evidence of things seen through deception.  Faith’s focus is on believing God.  Fear’s focus is on believing false realities.  1 John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear: because fear has torment.  He that fears is not made perfect in love.” 

Fear has torment.  Have you ever had any form of fear without torment?  Everything that I am afraid of has torment involved: Speaking in front of people—torment.  Large spiders—torment.  Being rejected—torment.  Something bad happening to myself or anyone I love—torment.  Failure—torment.  Illness—torment.  Even things that are good like meeting new people, doing something new, learning a new skill, traveling by yourself, have at the beginning at least some form of torment involved; uneasiness, stress, fear of the unknown etc. 

The only form of fear I know that involves zero torment is the fear of the Lord.  This kind of fear is the kind of fear that inspires awe, reverence, and honor.  Listen to these verses on the fear of the Lord:
 
“And to the man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” (Job 28:28)
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:7)
“The fear of the Lord prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be shortened.” (Proverbs 10:27)
“The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death.” (Proverbs 14:27)
“In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and his children will have refuge.” (Proverbs 14:26)
“Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord.” (Psalm 128:4)
“Let all the earth fear the Lord; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.” (Psalm 33:8)
 
When we fear anything else other than God, we set ourselves up to bring upon ourselves the very thing we fear.  Job was a man who was blessed in every way—he had many children, great wealth, abundant livestock, fullness of health and favor with God, yet this verse in Job 3 suggests that he always had an underlying fear of everything being taken away—and it was.  He lost his children, his livestock, his wealth, his health, and even had his wife tell him to curse God and die.  The thing he greatly feared came upon him. 

So, I’ll ask my question again: what if Job had not greatly feared anything but God?  What if I choose to not fear anything but God?  What if you choose to not fear anything but God?  I don’t know about you, but I want to find out…this verse in the book of Job has made me take inventory of the things I fear.  It’s made me take a good long look at what I am setting myself up for down the road.  It explains much of what I have experienced up until now. It makes me want to heed and do II Corinthians 10:5, “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ…”   It makes me want to hear and believe every “Fear not” in the whole of scripture, like Isaiah 41:10, “Fear not, for I am with you: be not dismayed; for I am your God: I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.”  Or Isaiah 43:1b-3a, “Fear not: for I have called you by your name; you are mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; neither will the flame kindle upon you.  For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour…” 
 
“For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me…” If that “thing” is God, let it be so Lord.  Come upon me, overtake me, let me fear nothing but You, and You alone.
 
 
                                                                   The Thing I Feared
 
The thing I feared has come upon me
Overshadowing everything else
Your perfect love is now my shelter
My awe of You I cannot tell
 
The thing I feared has come upon me
Fierceness of an army set forth
Removed the other trifling angsts
My soul set free for evermore
 
The thing I feared has come upon me
When I breathed His Holy Name
I released the other fears that bound me
Now my life will never be the same
 
The thing I feared has come upon me
Mighty, Awesome, Warrior, King
Come in, abide, my wondrous refuge
Oh the joy Your presence brings!
 
The thing I feared has come upon me
The One who loves and never leaves
He is all I am meant to fear forever
Unto Him I will yield and cleave…




Written by Anne Marie Hawke
November 2020

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