There is no fear in
love. But perfect love drives out fear.
—1 John 4:18a (NIV)
There is no perfect earthly love. Earthly love changes with
circumstance, and it changes with feeling. However, there is a perfect
spiritual love that conquers fear and lives in faith that God will take care of
anything that comes against it. This perfect love carries me safely through all
of life’s struggles and heartaches. It never deserts me, and it never changes.
When this spiritual love is perfected in my life, it brings greater faith to
believe in the impossible. What is this perfect love? It is the love of God who
gave His Son, Jesus Christ, for me. If that is beyond my human capacity to
understand, it is meant to be. I can’t understand such a perfect love with my mind.
It is useless to try to analyze it. My mind can’t fathom the depth of this
sacrificial love, but my spirit can receive it.
The only way to receive this perfect love that conquers fear
is to allow Christ into my heart. He loved me enough to die for my sin so I
might be set free from its control over me. He, who was perfect and knew so
sin, became sin so it might be crucified forever in my life and I might receive
His perfect love. Fear can only be defeated with His perfect love living in me.
When I let go of what is imperfect in me, I receive His love.
It washes away all that I have been so I may receive all that He is. With His
perfect love in my life, continually changing me, His love becomes stronger in
me and perfects me. Only His perfected love in my life can drive out fear and
give me faith to believe. If I remain rooted in His love and growing in His
grace, perseverance will finish its work so that I may be mature and complete,
not lacking in anything. I will be strong enough to choose faith over fear.
If I am dealing with great fear, then His love has not been
perfected in me. My mind has been focused on my struggles, and my feelings have
pulled me away from His promised fullness of life. The Lord will keep me in His
perfect peace when my mind remains on Him instead of other circumstances. I
cannot grow stronger in what I feel. I can only become stronger in what I know.
I rejoice in the knowledge that His perfect love drives out
all fear. It drives it out as His love is continually perfected in me. My promise
and my journey is to be perfected by the Lord who gave His life for me.
From Form Me, Fire Me, Fill Me
© 2017 Lynn
Lacher
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