July is about freedom and I think we should celebrate freedom all month long! Thanks to Micah for asking me to be a guest blogger. It makes me chuckle to even write that out. I’m certainly not a blogger or writer, but I serve a pretty awesome God who drops me little nuggets of goodness sometimes. I am happy to share them and oh so blessed when others can receive from it too. Yah!
Ok, back to freedom. What immediately resonated in my spirit when Micah asked me to be a sub was freedom from fear! Yes and amen! We do not have to be captive to fear. In 2 Timothy 1:7 (TPT) it says, “For God will never give you the spirit of fear (note it says NEVER), but the Holy Spirit who gives you mighty power, love, and self-control.”
I’m sure those of you who regularly read Micah’s blog saw her post a while back about my husband, Derrick, passing away. If you did not know, this happened in February of this year, after a short bout with COVID (amongst other health issues). Even before Derrick passed away, 2 Timothy 1:7 was my go to. If I ever feel fear, anxiety, or worry starting to creep in, I stop myself and ask why am I feeling this?! Usually I can pinpoint the thing, person, news…etc. that is fostering these “fearing feelings,” as I like to call them. I then remind myself that God doesn’t give us fear, and if it’s not of God it has to go! Once I have gotten to the root of what’s going on, I repeat that scripture four or five times to help redirect my thoughts. It may sound cliché, but it really works!
As I’m walking out my new journey with my two beautiful girls by my side, keeping fear stomped out is at the top of my list. We have no place in our home for fear. Have you ever actually stopped to think about where some of your fears/anxiety come from?? Have you felt it when you jumped on one of your social media pages and seen a post about an accident or a post you didn’t agree with or it popped on the news? Ugh. I challenge each of you to take a week (or six, haha) and fast from all the “socials.” Seriously, it’s good to shut outside influences off sometimes. If you’ve never tried it, I guarantee you’ll be refreshed. Now that you have all this extra time….have you ever checked out all the powerful scriptures God gives us on fear?? I want to give you a couple of my top favorites to help you conquer any stronghold fear/anxiety is trying to have over you!
“Joseph replied, ‘Don’t be afraid. Do I act for God? Don’t you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good, as you see all around you right now—life for many people. Easy now, you have nothing to fear; I’ll take care of you and your children.’ He reassured them, speaking with them heart-to-heart.”
Genesis 50:19-21 MSG
Wow! This scripture speaks to me on such a different level now than ever before. Joseph was literally in a pit left for dead, no way out. I lost my husband and life going forward seemed hard to envision. But I believe, just like Joseph, God is turning an awful story around and will use it for good and His glory—He will take care of my children and I. You may feel like you’re in the middle of an attack from the enemy, BUT rest assured God can turn it in to good. Keep praying and trusting through your storm!
“I leave the gift of peace with you—my peace. Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace. Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts—instead, be courageous!”
John 14:27 TPT
Guys, there’s no other way to describe the peace I have in my heart, except God! No, that doesn’t mean I’m bouncing around every day like sunshine and rainbows. It doesn’t mean that when my girls cry for daddy, when another holiday goes by without daddy, when we find something around the house that was daddy’s that we just sweep it under the rug. No! We pray until the peace comes. We cry and grieve through that wave of fear and anxiety of not having daddy, and then we dig deep and pull out our courage. God makes us brave!
“God, you’re such a safe and powerful place to find refuge! You’re a proven help in time of trouble— more than enough and always available whenever I need you. So we will never fear even if every structure of support were to crumble away. We will not fear even when the earth quakes and shakes, moving mountains and casting them into the sea.”
Psalms 46:1-2 TPT
Friends, I leave you with this…God is a safe place. God wants to take your fear and anxiety. He wants to eliminate that from your life. I pray right now for anyone reading this post to feel a new freedom from fear! A release! God, I ask that no matter what each person is going through, speak to them exactly where they are and show them that You are in fact a good good fear-fighting Father! FAITH > fear.
As Micah would say, keep sending and mending!! God bless you!
Love, Holly Ledbetter
Innocently said, Holly --- which makes it powerful!
Thank you.