a reccomendation

     If you are in the habit of reading the back of a book to help you decide whether to buy it, I suggest flipping Fearless by Max Lucado over. I will not quote the back of the book. I will tell you that Max Lucado expertly describes the origins of fear, showing prime examples of it in the Bible. Mr. Lucado also gives instruction on how to manage fear throughout his book.

     On pages thirty-four through thirty-five, the first case of fear documented in the bible is noted. When the snake tricks Eve into taking from the Tree of Knowledge it is pointed out in the book that Eve was,

"Afraid that God was holding out, that she was missing out? Afraid Eden wasn't enough? Afraid God couldn't deliver?"

     Now, haven't we questioned God's ability to deliver a loved one from pain or a terrible disease? Don't you feel that the outcome (no matter what it was) is God's will? The chapter goes on to say,

"Fear, mismanaged, leads to sin. Sin leads to hiding".

     There are several places people hide from God. We hide in our work, our play, anything that might keep us from church or our personal time with God.
     One place that fear stems from is worry, after all, we wouldn't worry if we weren't afraid, right? In Chapter four, eight steps are listed on pages forty-nine through fifty-one, to help stop fear:
Pray first
Easy, now
Act on it
Compile a worry list
Evaluate your worry categories
Focus on today
Unleash a worry army
Let God be enough
P-E-A-C-E-F-U-L
     At first glance it might not be obvious how a few of these steps are useful, you have to read the explanations for each step.
     I read this book in a little over 2 hours yesterday; I have never finished a book so quickly. It was easy to read. It also made me laugh in places, and made me think in several others. It is pointed out that as we grow we see Jesus differently, that is we see different qualities that we hadn't in the past. This comes from our own maturity. Our own circumstances help us to see what Jesus and God are capable of.
     I leave you with one of my favorite quotes from this book:

"Seek first the kingdom of wealth, and you'll worry over every dollar. Seek first the kingdom of health, and you'll sweat every blemish and bump. Seek first the kingdom of popularity, and you'll relive every conflict. Seek first the kingdom of safety, and you'll jump at every crack of the twig. But seek first His kingdom, and you will find it. On that, we can depend, and never worry." (p. 51)

     I hope you all have a great week.