Read: 1 John 4:16-18

Part One:

It is my experience that one cause of fear* and anxiety* is not understanding how deeply we are loved by God. When we understand how much we are loved, we place our trust in him. We don’t trust those we aren’t sure truly love us.

I will be the first to say that it is difficult to grasp God’s love for me because 1) I can’t see him. 2) I can’t hear him. 3) I can’t feel him.

I say all of that from the perspective of being able to see, hear and feel an actual human body. Like, I can’t pinch Jesus or startle him. He no longer lives in a human body.

But he is alive! And I experience him in other ways. I see him in nature, I see him in my children and grandchildren, I see him in the people around me. He reveals himself through his word, he speaks to me when I am quiet.

Then I hear him. I know his voice and I listen to it. John 10:4 says, “After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice.”

He reveals himself to us if we are willing to see it. And when we are convinced of his love for us, we can trust Him.

To be continued….

*There is the reality of fear/anxiety from traumatic events and that is not the result of lack of trust in God. Healing from the episode is possible but I am not addressing that in this post.