“She is clothed in strength and dignity, and laughs without fear of the future.” Proverbs 31:25
This has always been one of my favorite scriptures. Depending on my season of life, it has meant so many different things to me. I’ll be the first to admit that I have not fully accomplished the full goal of this verse.
She laughs without fear of the future.
She LAUGHS.
I don’t believe this is implying a woman that is laughing maniacally and has no hold on what is happening around her. No, she knows what is going on. She’s aware that her bills are due and her bank account is empty. She’s aware that her friend or child is sick, and they may not live to see another sunrise. She’s aware that her life could come crashing down at any moment, but she completely understands Who holds her life. She knows the God of her future, and she has no fear of what’s to come.
I’m not there yet. Not in the ways I want to be. But I strive. Fear is a sneaky thing. It slips in unaware and uninvited, trying to destroy our faith and cripple us. I listened to a message just this morning, and Sis. Burton explained that fear, not reverence but fear, was not created by God. Fear is a result of sin, brought about by the fall of Adam and Eve, initiated by the devil. The devil doesn’t want us to live in peace, laughing with no fear of what is in our future. He doesn’t want us to have faith and hope in Jesus. He wants us to be stagnated by fear, losing the hope and future that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ guaranteed us. His future is set, and he wants the same for us. So the enemy uses fear to whittle down our faith, to strip away our confidence in Christ and who we are in Him.
Maybe I still get knocked off balance occasionally. I may even let fearful thoughts niggle about in my mind longer than I should. I’ve not fulfilled who God is calling me to be: but I’m striving. One day at a time, one circumstance at a time, I’m finding joy in His strength and hope in the future that is held by my Master. I refuse to live in fear. I refuse to let fear rule my life. I refuse to let fear rob me of my joy, of my hope and my future. I refuse to let fear cause me to become stagnate in my ministry and my calling.
Fear of failure.
Fear of success.
Fear of the unknown.
Fear of disappointment.
Fear of heartbreak.
Fear of mediocrity.
Fear of losing control.
Those things are not for me. I refuse to accept them. I was meant to live in joy, with a song on my lips and laughter in my heart.
Don’t be surprised if one day soon you see me laughing in the midst of a storm, friend. I’m pushing through my fear, and I’m holding onto my hope and my future, and I intend to find (and keep!) joy along the way.
