Isaiah 41:10

New King James Version:
"Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

Amplified Version:
"Fear not [there is nothing to fear], for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice."

The Message:
"Don't panic. I'm with you.
There's no need to fear for I'm your God.
I'll give you strength. I'll help you.
I'll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you."

No matter how you phrase it, God does not want us to be fearful. In a world teeming with terrorist threats, war, famine, economic disaster, diseases including a flu pandemic, crime, and other threats too numerous to mention, He instructs us to rely upon Him. When we are weakened and distraught, He will strengthen us. When our knees are ready to buckle from the weight of the world bearing down on our shoulders, He will uphold us. When terror stabs at our hearts, He will retain us and steady us.

Fear is that unpleasant sensation of anxiety that creeps into our spirits due to dangers infiltrating our lives. More often, fear is that sensation we perceive when we ANTICIPATE that something treacherous or perilous is going to happen in our lives. We need to be sensitive to discern when fear is a response to an imminent threat. If a rabid dog is nipping at our heels, fear will strike. If a mugger has snatched our handbag, fear will strike. God’s Words of instruction are attempting to illustrate for us that even in these imminent attacks, we need to quickly turn to Him for assistance. Our physical beings take over and we begin shouting for help from others, calling 911, or trying to rectify the situation in our own power or by asking for help from other individuals. We need to retrain ourselves, so that instantaneously, we will shout out to our God for His deliverance and protection from harm.

The testimony of David Wilkerson in The Cross and the Switchblade encourages me to become bolder in my faith when facing fearful situations. Reverend Wilkerson spent much time in New York City ministering to gang members. Niky Cruz was one of these gang members that Reverend Wilkerson confronted. He reached out to him in love and forgiveness instead of fear. To watch this testimony from Mr. Cruz go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zelqF0mamCw

Sometimes it takes facing our very worst fear for us to truly discover the power of Christ. Cancer rates as one of Americans greatest fears – but once confronted and living with cancer – Christ has taken that fear from me. I was fearful of inner-city neighborhoods and then Christ took my hand and led me to work right in the midst of an inner-city neighborhood with drug dealers, gun fights, prostitutes, and other crime. I have witnessed Christ take these two fears in my own life and use them for His glory.

Search your heart and soul and uncover areas of fear in your life. Repent of the sin of fear. And then ask yourself how to best confront that area of fear, measure it against God's Word, and conquer the fear so that He is glorified.