Be Not Afraid

“Will we run out of air today?”
I have never lost sleep worrying that one morning I’d wake up and all the air in Florida would be gone because I forgot to make more. Our lives depend on many things around us that are completely outside of our control. The Earth will spin. The sun will rise. The winds will blow. The stars will shine. It would be silly to become fearful that any of those things would stop working because one of us forgets to put another quarter in the meter. “Be Not Afraid” is a song about that. Please give it a listen, and come back for a chat on overcoming fear.

Game changer

Our song “Be Not Afraid” draws from this verse:

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (II Timothy 1:7)

When God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, it made a difference. Let’s look at some key words from this verse to get a taste of the difference Jesus made.

  • SPIRIT OF FEAR
    The “spirit of fear is real — but God does not give it. God gives good and perfect gifts, not evil spirits. What God has given mankind through Jesus Christ is the new birth, new life, holy spirit life. God’s gift enables believers in the name of Jesus Christ to cast out the spirit of fear when and where it appears.
  • POWER
    “Power” in this verse comes from the same Greek word from which we get the word “dynamite”. Dynamite does absolutely nothing — as long as it just sits there and no one lights it. But light it up — and run! When we get born again, we receive power from on high. Like dynamite, it does nothing until we light it up. It sits there like furniture. God has given us power. Now it is our job to light it up. Read more about it in Acts 2 — when the twelve manifested power on that day of Pentecost, and 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14 — which go into more detail on manifesting holy spirit power. BOOM!
  • LOVE
    “Love” is the Greek word agape, sometimes used in the Bible to mean “the love of God in the renewed mind in manifestation.” It is perfect love, the kind that casts out fear. Agape love is one of the “fruit of the spirit” listed in Galatians 5. It blossoms when a person puts his new life in Christ to work. Powerful stuff.
  • SOUND MIND
    “Sound mind” means “whole thoughts”. Romans says “the carnal mind is death but to be spiritually minded is life and peace”. The spirit God gives helps us receive and think “whole thoughts”. 1 Corinthians 2 declares that in order to understand the spiritual things of God, we need the spirit that comes with the new birth. Here is a useful key Paul gave Timothy: “Consider what I say, and the Lord give you understanding in all things.” When we need understanding, God says, “Ask.”

Replace one negative with three positives

Negative thoughts suck the life out of us.
Here is a tip: when a negative thought hits you, aggressively replace it with with three positive thoughts.
Replace “I might fail” with
“I can do this”
“I have what I need” and
“This is no big deal for me”.

I love how 2 Timothy 1:7 replaces
“spirit of fear” with three positives:
POWER,
LOVE,
SOUND MIND.

Give this a try! Don’t let negatives just sit there and gum up your gears. Send three positives after a negative and chase it away.
LEAVE.
GO.
SHOO!

Let’s exercise our God-given authority, be of good cheer and be not afraid.

God bless you lots!
-Dale R.


LYRICS: Be Not Afraid
Song by Dale Reichel (2020)

CHORUS:
God has not called us to fear, but to power, power, power
And to love, love, love, and to thoughts that are whole
He said, “Be not afraid”, so let’s be of good courage,
Let us love, love, love and trust, trust, trust Him with all our heart and soul.

1) Should we lie awake at night, filled with dread and despair
With the thought that tomorrow the oceans might go dry,
Or that the trees might go on strike and stop cleaning up the air,
Or that all the twinkling stars above might fall out of the sky?

2) Should we listen to the TV, or heed the radio
When their experts all assure us the sun might not arise?
It may be they don’t know what they really do not know,
But we know God loves and guides us well and faithfully supplies.

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Share your wisdom with other readers ...

Have you ever worried about where air would come from, or something else like it that was God’s to do, and not yours? Jot a note in the “Leave a reply” spot below.

First posted March 27, 2020. New song video and updated article March 16, 2023.

12 Replies to “Be Not Afraid”

  1. Julia M Witchard

    Good evening Mr dale ,” “BE NOT AFRAID “. WHAT DID OUR FATHER JESUS SAY, IN MY FATHER’S HOUSE,ARE MANY MANSIONS, IF IT WAS NOT SO, I WOULDN’T HAVE TOLD YOU ,.. I GO TO PREPARE A PLACE FOR U, BECAUSE THAT’S WHERE I AM, THERE U MAY BE ALSO, … WHAT AN AMAZING FATHER WE SERVE .. BLESSINGS TO U ALL,..

    Reply
    1. Dale Reichel Post author

      You said it. What a swirl of changes going on in this old world. What great changes lie ahead. Always thankful for every glimpse of heaven we get to see here … people caring for others, beautiful sunsets and flowers, family time with loved ones. Little tastes of how good God is, and what is in store for His people. Thanks for your note. God bless you lots — Dale R.

      Reply
  2. Julia M Witchard

    Good evening mr dale… be not afraid… THAT’S WHAT OUR FATHER JESUS SAID… Didn’t HE Mr Dale…. HE SAID BE NOT AFRAID, I AM WITH U TILL THE END OF TIME… TRUST ME, I HAVE PAID THE PRICE, I GAVE MY LIFE SO U MIGHT LIVE…LEAN ON ME, AND U DON’T HAVE TO BE AFRAID OF ANYTHING…I 💘 U…ALWAYS

    Reply
    1. Dale Reichel Post author

      Being able to live without fear … one of the great blessings from the Lord! Thanks for your note, Julia. God bless you lots — Dale R.

      Reply
  3. Julia Witchard

    Good afternoon mr Dale,just sitting here going over your sermon, be not afraid…..I AM WITH U TIL THE END OF TIME…THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR ENCOURAGING Words….MAY OUR FATHER JESUS BLESS U AND YOUR FAMILY ALWAYS….KEEP THE FAITH…..MUCH LOVE GOES OUT TO U AND YOUR FAMILY…ALWAYS…

    Reply

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