Category Archives: Fear

Jan28

Day 28 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…A God Who Is Not Afraid Of My fears

Posted on January 28, 2026 by lsgrlr

For the last fourteen days, I have lived like Peter on the water with Jesus, only his eyes were not on Jesus, but on the circumstances he was in, the waves rushing, the ocean that he was most certainly (in his mind) not meant to be walking on, the boat that he was NOT in bouncing back and forth. Like Peter, I have been sinking in my sadness, fear, worry, uncertainty, and yes, anxiety. However, at my core, deep inside my heart, that place that knows God is still the same God who called Peter out of the boat and the same God who stood on the water and allowed Peter to do the same. Even as I sink, I know that my hope is in a God who controls the waves. I completely understand that if I took my eyes off the circumstances surrounding me and focused on Him, He would lift me up and keep me from drowning.

Today, after talking to my brother and admitting openly that I was not okay. God opened a door in my heart, a door I had stood in front of desperately wanting to walk through, but for reasons I could not or maybe would not reach out my hand to grab the handle. But God (my absolute favorite two words in the Bible) flung it open for me. I cried out to Him, I told Him everything, every fear, every worry, and every disappointment. I dropped the “Christian” mask, you know the one, it smiles and says everything is okay, God’s got it, even as you wonder if He really does,

He does. He always does, and always will.

“I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous.” Joshua 1:5-6a

You see, friends, courage is not the absence of fear; it’s the presence of trust. Trust in a God that walks on water and calms the storms of our lives and the world around us. It’s okay to have fears; it’s human. It’s okay to ask God, “Do you have this?” He’s not afraid of our fear or our questions. So, if, like me, you have been living like Peter sinking in the seas. Look up and cry out to God; He will lift you up.

So, what am I thankful for today? A God who is not afraid of my fears.

Jan14

Day 14 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…God’s Light

Posted on January 14, 2026 by lsgrlr

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Day 14 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…God’s Light

Part of my devotions took me to the book of Kings, 2 Kings to be more precise. Currently, I am in chapter 15. What I have been noticing about the kings who “did right in the sight of the Lord” is that they did right, but did not lead the people of God to do the same. In verse 34 of chapter 15, we meet Jotham, the son of Uzziah. He was twenty-five when he began his reign. Picking it up in verse 34, “And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all his father Uzziah had done. Nevertheless, the high places were not removed. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord.”

Smushed in between “he did what was right” and “he built the upper gates of the house of the Lord” is this statement, “Nevertheless, the high places were not removed.” Why is this statement one that requires acknowledgement? Because the people were not sacrificing to the God of their fathers, the God who brought them into their promised land, the God who gave them David, the God who has their good at heart in all situations. No, they were sacrificing to idols, false gods made by hand. A god of their own making, a god they could control.

We do the same today; we have places in our hearts, minds, or lives that are off limits to God. That place we try to hide from His view. That place where we’re like, “No worries, God, I got this.” However, we don’t have this; a god of our making is not God. If you’re wondering why you are not where you want to be with the Lord, why He isn’t opening the flood gates of blessings upon your life. Maybe take a step back and check whether your “high places” have been removed. We can’t move forward with God if we’re holding on to the world, to sin, to gods we have crafted in our image.

Surrender is the name of the game, friends. Give God that part of your life that you have locked away, let Him do His perfect work in your life, and I guarantee, God will make your dark places beautiful.

“Jesus said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life'” (John 8:12).

So, what am I thankful for today? Light that takes away my high places.

Jan13

Day 13 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…Compassion

Posted on January 13, 2026 by lsgrlr

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Day 13 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…Compassion

This week has been difficult on many levels, some of it my doing, and some things I have no control over. This is why I find it interesting and so very God, that on Sunday my pastor was in the book of Job. Job did nothing to incur the trials he faced, the loss, devastation, saddness and sickness. What I find very beautiful about Job is that he did not have the hindsight that we have been given in the Bible, God’s words to us. Job did not have the book of Job to reflect on, as he listened to bad advice and personal opinions from those who were supposedly his friends. Yet, despite it all, Job believed in God and trusted Him.

Job gives us an example of lamenting, a speech where we tell God what is on our hearts, the gritty, dirty truth of injustice, where we ask God why we are in this valley, and we fill Him in on the things we don’t understand, while knowing that God is still faithful, even in our darkness. Here’s what lamenting isn’t: whining, nor is it unrighteous anger. Lamenting is a “language of people who believe in God’s sovereignty, but live in a world of tragedy” (Mark Vroegop, Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy). You see, we can be in despair; we can feel pain and discouragement, and we can bring all of that to God. He is not afraid of our questions or our lamenting. He wants us to come to Him because He is the answer to our needs.

So, friends, if you’re walking through the midst of a storm, you don’t understand, cry out to God. Bring Him your pain, your anger, your confusion, because God understands your heart, knows that you love Him, that you want His will for your life. He will have compassion on your pain because He is not afraid of it. He loves you. His compassion is new every morning. He won’t allow your pain and anger to consume you.

“Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness!” (Lamentations 3:22-23).

So, what am I thankful for today? That my Father has compassion on my pain.

Dec29

Day 363 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…God Taking My Heart of Stone

Posted on December 29, 2025 by lsgrlr

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Day 363 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…God Taking My Heart of Stone

Yesterday at church, I read a verse that I am sure I have read many times before, but it felt like the first time I had truly seen it. The verse is from Mark 6:52. However, before I write the verse, let me give some backstory: Jesus had just finished feeding over 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish. He then told his disciples to get in the boat and go ahead of him, while he spent some time in prayer. As the disciples continue their journey, a storm begins, and they struggle to keep control of the boat. Jesus sees this and comes to meet them by walking on the water. But upon seeing this, the disciples are afraid, mistaking Jesus for a ghost. We will pick up in verse 50b as we make our way to verse 52. “Immediately, He spoke to them and said, ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’ Then He climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, for THEY HAD NOT UNDERSTOOD ABOUT THE LOAVES; THEIR HEARTS WERE HARDENED.”

You see it too, right? “They didn’t understand about the loaves, their hearts were hardened.” I have read the book of Mark more than once, and I have never noticed this verse before. The disciples lived with Jesus, ate with Jesus, journeyed with Jesus, and witnessed every single miracle FIRSTHAND and STILL DID NOT UNDERSTAND. It made me think about my life, about all the ways I see God move in my life and in my world daily, and how, despite all He’s done, I still struggle to trust Him with 100% of my heart. It can feel discouraging, can’t it? Like a hamster on a wheel, only the hamster knows where the food is, has all the tools needed to get off the wheel, yet speeds up its pace of going nowhere. We complain about the disciples and declare that we’d have done it differently, yet here we are doing the exact same thing in real time.

Here’s the hope, friends, Jesus didn’t leave the disciples; He continued with them because He knew that one day He would lead them to understanding, one day their eyes would see fully, and when that day came, they would change the world in His name. Here’s a promise to hold on to when you feel like your heart is hardened: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws” (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

Today, I am thankful that God will take away my heart of stone.

Dec21

Day 355 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…My Weakness

Posted on December 21, 2025 by lsgrlr

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Day 355 of Random (hopefully inspired) Thought. Today I Am Thankful For…My Weakness

Do you sometimes feel weak, have feelings of inadequacy? Times when you’re fearful that if you move, you will fall flat on your face? Our weakness can be crippling, keeping us from moving forward, worried that if we do, we will fail for everyone to see. Here’s a truth that we often find hard to believe: don’t fear your weakness. Embrace it. Yup, I did say embrace weakness. Why? Because in our weakness God is strong. When we look at weakness through the lens of our humanity, we see it as less than or not good enough. However, when we look at weakness through the lens of God’s love and grace towards us, we, too, like Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9, can hear God say, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” To us, weakness, for the lack of a better word, is, well, weak. But God sees it as an opportunity for His power to be made perfect.

If the road you are walking seems to have more pits and potholes than paved paths. Don’t let fear of being too weak to make it keep you from taking that first step. God is there walking with us, and if we trust and believe, we will see His power being perfected in us.

“Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” John 11:40

Take heart, friends, God wants to show us beautiful, glorious, perfected power, so don’t fear your weakness. Embrace it.

Today I am thankful for my weakness.

Mar6

Random (hopefully inspired) Thoughts

Posted on March 6, 2015 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

2 Kings 19. “Thus you shall say to your master, Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid of the words which you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. Surely I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land” (Verses 5-7). God will always take care of His name, and take care of His people. The king of Assyria was threatening the people of God, telling them that God was not on their side, that God was not strong enough to save them. But God proved the man wrong, when He defended His people, and won. It is easy to feel like we are somehow greater than God, but everyday He proves us wrong, in the most simple of ways.

Mar4

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on March 4, 2015 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

2 Kings 18. “He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan.He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him. For he held fast to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses. The Lord was with him; he prospered wherever he went. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him. He subdued the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city” (Verses 4-8). This Chapter sees the return of a king that not only does right in the eyes of the Lord, but obeys Him completely. It is a reminder that we are not to just to good, but we are to obey. God blesses obedience everyday and all the time.

Jan25

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on January 25, 2015 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

1 Kings 21. “So it was, when Ahab heard those words, that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his body, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about mourning. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘See how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the calamity in his days. In the days of his son I will bring the calamity on his house'” (Verses 27-29). God forgives. Always. I want to interject my very human opinion here, Ahab did not deserve forgiveness, but God promised that if we come to Him with a contrite heart, He would forgive. Ahab humbled himself before the Lord, and God’s forgiveness means that the heart of the kings was genuine. However, God did not completely remove His judgment from Ahab’s house, he just removed it from Ahab. We are responsible for our own sins, and our own actions. God will not judge us based on another’s action, He judges us based on our hearts before Him. And even if it hurts His judgments are right.

(side note: there was a lot in this chapter… that I wanted to talk about. So please read Chapter 21. And Let me know in the comments, what you got from the chapter)

Jan22

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on January 22, 2015 by lsgrlr

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*Please Read this Entire Chapter. There is so much in it.*

I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

1 Kings 19. “Then He said, ‘Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.’ And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?'” (Verses 11-13). This Chapter is chalk full of so many lesson. So many things that we do as Christians, that should receive a big eye roll from God, yet what He gives us instead is patience and love. Elijah has killed the prophet, and God had showed up and showed off. Yet one note from one woman has Elijah running away as though God couldn’t handle it. Which I think is why instead of the loud wind, and the earthquake God showed up in the still small voice, and why His question was, “What are you doing here?” We expect the big and grandiose from God, but what we don’t expect is for God to show up in our everyday. But that’s what relationship is, God being a part of our everyday. Elijah didn’t need to run from Jezebel, he needed to run to God. He wasn’t where he was suppose to be and so God asked him a very normal question, ‘what are you doing here?’ Let God guide our everyday, don’t run from Him, run to Him.

Jan15

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on January 15, 2015 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

1 Kings 13. “And he said, ‘I cannot return with you nor go in with you; neither can I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place. For I have been told by the word of the Lord, ‘You shall not eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by going the way you came.’ He said to him, ‘I too am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.’ (He was lying to him.). (Verses 16-18). This will be simple… Obey God. Period. The prophet knew what God had said, but he listened to a lie and it cost him his life. Obedience above all that is what God desires.