{"id":347572,"date":"2025-12-17T01:28:40","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T01:28:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/reflections-crippled-by-fear\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T01:28:40","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T01:28:40","slug":"reflections-crippled-by-fear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572","title":{"rendered":"REFLECTIONS : Crippled by Fear ?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"post-body-4511889736373896352\" itemprop=\"description articleBody\">\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><u><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Curlz MT&quot;; font-size: 24.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Crippled by FEAR ?<o:p\/><\/span><\/u><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Isaiah 41:10<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<br \/>\n<\/span>\u2018Fear not,for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will<br \/>\nstrengthen you, yes I will help you. I will uphold you with My righteous right<br \/>\nhand.\u2019<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">As I awoke quite<br \/>\nearly this morning, this verse came to mind. How appropriate it was too, for<br \/>\nmany reasons. May be it was no coincidence that I was being kept awake by a<br \/>\nvery heavy storm outside, with the rain beating down onto the roof closely<br \/>\nfollowed by<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>a loud clap of thunder and<br \/>\nflashes of lightning. Finally I could make out the sound of hailstones beating<br \/>\ndown on the tiles above me like little bullets.<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">It\u2019s stopped now<br \/>\nand all is quiet for the time being! It\u2019s often not<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>the storms outside that cause us most fear<br \/>\nbut rather those inside our heads, turmoil that won\u2019t go away and robs of any<br \/>\npeace. This can be caused by many different reasons:- fear associated with<br \/>\nliving on your own, fear of going into a new situation to meet people you don\u2019t<br \/>\nknow, fear of being attacked when we are out and about, fear of a forthcoming<br \/>\noperation, fear of debt, fear of things we have done in our past that we\u2019re<br \/>\nashamed of coming to light, fear of failure&#8230;. the list goes on. Of course<br \/>\nthere are different levels of fear from acute down to mild with many others in<br \/>\nbetween. One of my fears has always been going to the dentist for a filling or<br \/>\nextraction. Nothing personal about the dentist of course . <o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">I am presently<br \/>\nreading John Ortberg\u2019s \u2018classic\u2019 book, \u2018 If you want to walk on water you got<br \/>\nto get out of the boat\u2019. It is , of course , based on the well-known incident<br \/>\nin the New testament found in Matthew 14:25-32 when early one morning, whilst<br \/>\nthe disciples were out in their boat on the Sea of Galilee, Jesus suddenly approaches<br \/>\nthem walking on the waters ! They were all terrified thinking at first that it<br \/>\nmust be a ghost Jesus addressed their fears telling them to \u2018Take heart. It is<br \/>\nI; do not be afraid\u2019. <o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Surely they then<br \/>\nrecognised His voice even if his image was Blurred. However Peter wanted more<br \/>\nevidence and expressed some doubt and ( as usual) was the only one who spoke<br \/>\nup. \u2018 Lord, if it is you command me to come to you on the water.\u2019 In other<br \/>\nwords , do a miracle for us then I\u2019ll know for certain! So when Jesus invited him<br \/>\nto come Peter stepped out of the boat and began walking towards Jesus. All went<br \/>\nwell at firstand he may have even been enjoying this \u2018water-walking thing\u2019.<br \/>\nThat was until he took his eyes off Jesus and looked down at the huge waves !<br \/>\nAlarmed he cried out, \u2018Lord, save me!\u2019 and Jesus immediately took him by the<br \/>\nhand and upbraided him, \u2018You of little faith, why did you you doubt?\u2019 Personally<br \/>\nI think this admonition was a little harsh. After all Peter was the only one to<br \/>\ntake Jesus at His word and at least start his journey towards Him. I don\u2019t<br \/>\nthink I would have stepped out of the boat until I\u2019d witnessed<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>all the other disciples do it successfully<br \/>\nand return to the boat safely !<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\"><span style=\"mso-tab-count: 1;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>There are many other passages in His word<br \/>\n<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>where God addresses<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>His<br \/>\npeople in order to alleviate their natural fears. Moses was reluctant to return<br \/>\nto Pharoah to demand the release of the Israelites from slavery . Moses gave<br \/>\nthe excuse that he was not a good speaker, not an eloquent man. So God provided<br \/>\nAaron his brother to go with him for companionship ! When Elijah ran for his<br \/>\nlife from Jezebel he <span style=\"background: #F2F2F2; color: black;\">\u00a0crawls<br \/>\nunder a scrubby tree and, in deep depression, asks God to let him die. Here We<br \/>\nfind<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>many classic symptoms of depression<br \/>\nin his thinking &#8211;withdrawal or escape, moodiness, apprehension or fear,<br \/>\nself-pity, feelings of worthlessness, loss of hope or confidence, anger,<br \/>\nirritability and so on <span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>to name just <span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>some of the symptoms.<span style=\"mso-tab-count: 3;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>\u2018I\u2019ve<br \/>\nhad enough . I may as well be dead.\u2019 <span style=\"mso-tab-count: 4;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>He<br \/>\nfell asleep , weary from his long journey and when woken by an angel was given<br \/>\nfood and drink which helped to replenish his strength. God\u2019s mercy !<o:p\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"background: #F2F2F2; color: black; font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">Isaiah says, \u2018Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have<br \/>\ncalled you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be<br \/>\nwith you; And through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you\u2026..\u2019<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<br \/>\n<\/span>Ortberg points out that the \u2018single command in scripture taht occurs<br \/>\nmore often than any other- God\u2019s most frequently repeated instruction \u2013 is<br \/>\nformulated in two words:- \u2018Fear not.\u2019 \u2018 Or similarly,<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>\u2018Do not be afraid.\u2019 \u2018Have no anxiety about<br \/>\nanything.\u2019 \u2018Do not worry about tomorrow&#8230;.\u2019 etc<span style=\"mso-tab-count: 3;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span> \u2018In fact there are 366 \u201cfear nots\u201d verses in the<br \/>\nBible- that equates to one for every day of the year , including leap years<br \/>\n!&#8230;\u2019<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"text-indent: 36.0pt;\"><span style=\"background: #F2F2F2; color: black; font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">We are at the present time (2020) living in and through<br \/>\nsome of the most fearful times in living memory for most of us due to the<br \/>\ncoronavirus pandemic that has so quickly<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<br \/>\n<\/span>spread it\u2019s tentacles throughout the world. This has resulted in many<br \/>\nthousands of deaths, countless illnesses and grief stricken families, not to<br \/>\nmention the dreade Lockdown with its many restrictions and loss of liberties,<br \/>\nloss of jobs, isolation and warnings not<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<br \/>\n<\/span>to socialise with friends and family who live too far away from our<br \/>\nneighbourhoods. This has resulted in folk becoming depressed or frustrated or<br \/>\nworried ( Should<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>I go shopping or order<br \/>\ngoods online? Have I brought a mask to wear in public places? Was that person<br \/>\ntoo close to me? How long will it be before a vaccine is discovered and<br \/>\navailable to all?<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>And so on&#8230;.)<br \/>\nThere is inner turmoil. How we long to be \u2018free\u2019 again, able to naturally mix<br \/>\nwith others, hug friends and family, go back to work , live in a state of some<br \/>\nsort of \u2018normality\u2019 ! <o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"background: #F2F2F2; color: black; font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%;\">I am reminded in 1 John 4: 18<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><b><sup><span style=\"background: white; color: black; font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;;\">18\u00a0<\/span><\/sup><\/b><span style=\"background: white; color: black; font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;;\">There is <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\">no fear in love<\/b>. But <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\">perfect love drives out fear<\/b>,\u00a0because<br \/>\n<b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\">fear has to do with punishment.<\/b> The <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\">one who fears is not made perfect in love<\/b>.<span style=\"mso-tab-count: 1;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"mso-tab-count: 12;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"background: white; color: black; font-family: &quot;Baskerville Old Face&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;;\">And <span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=2%20Timothy%201%3A7&amp;version=NKJV\"><span style=\"color: windowtext; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 21.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;\">2 Timothy<br \/>\n1:7<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 21.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"> tells us<br \/>\n<\/span><b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">For\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">God<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">has<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">not<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">given<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">us<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">a<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">spirit<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">of<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">fear<\/span>,\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">but<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">of<\/span>\u00a0power\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">a<\/span>nd\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">of <\/span>\u00a0love\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">a<\/span>nd\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">of<\/span>\u00a0<span style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;\">a<\/span>\u00a0sound<br \/>\nmind.<o:p\/><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">Finally let\u2019s look<br \/>\nagain at Isaiah 41:10 . Apart from telling us twice not to fear or be afraid,<br \/>\nGod draws our attention to his great promises and assurances :-<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>\u2018I am with you!\u2019<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u2018I am your God.\u2019<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>\u2018I will strengthen you !\u2019<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>\u2018I will help you.\u2019<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>\u2018I will uphold you with my powerful right<br \/>\nhand.\u2019<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">The Lord promises to<br \/>\nalways be there for us whatever our circumstances and<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>His promise is to give us peace if we but \u2018<br \/>\ncast all our care upon Him.\u2019 <span style=\"mso-tab-count: 1;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"mso-tab-count: 9;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Phillipians<br \/>\n4;6,7 says \u2018 Have no anxiety about anything but in everything with prayer and<br \/>\nthanksgiving<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>let your request be made<br \/>\nknown to God<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>&#8230; And<span style=\"mso-tab-count: 2;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>The <b style=\"mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;\">peace of God which passes all understanding will keep our hearts and<br \/>\nminds<span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>in Christ Jesus \u2018 <\/b><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">I love this verse for<br \/>\nmany reasons but chiefly because God promises His PEACE if <span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>cease from our strivings and pray, thank Him<br \/>\nand bring our concerns to Him. Peace that \u2018 passes all understanding \u2018 ! <span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>In the words of that lovely hymn by<br \/>\nHoratio Spafford :- <o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">\u2018 When peace like a<br \/>\nriver attendeth my way<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>When<br \/>\nsorrow like sea billows roll,<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>Whatever my lot , Thou has taught me to say<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">It is well, it is<br \/>\nwell with my soul&#8230;.\u2019<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\">And Horatio Spafford<br \/>\ncertainly knew sorrow like few others. The hymn was written after he had lost<br \/>\nhis 4 year old son. He was financially ruined in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871<br \/>\n. Later he lost all 4 of his daughters at sea when the ship they were sailing<br \/>\nin collided with another vessel whilst crossing the Atlantic.<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0<\/span>A child will come to its mother when he or she<br \/>\nis hurt or feeling down, lonely or scared for a cwtch or cuddle and for love.<br \/>\nThe child comes without care or fear of rebuke or rejection because it knows<br \/>\nthat the mother loves him or her unconditionally ! How much more will our<br \/>\nheavenly Father do this for us . \u2018 God shows His love for us in that while we<br \/>\nwere yet sinners , Christ died for us\u2019 Through Christ God has<span style=\"mso-tab-count: 1;\">\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>made a way for us to come into His arms to<br \/>\nexperience His unconditional love, His cwtch. We need have no fear in coming.<br \/>\nThere is nothing we can do to earn it, nothing we need to do to persuade God to<br \/>\nshow us this love, and nothing God can do to refuse to give us His love if we<br \/>\ncome through no merit of our own but rather in repentance, contrition and<br \/>\nfaith. He wants to give us peace for our anxiety, victory over fear, faith for<br \/>\nour doubts and above all His infinite grace and mercy.<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><span style=\"mso-spacerun: yes;\">\u00a0 <\/span>The Lord said to the apostle Paul who<br \/>\nsuffered from some sort of ongoing affliction and asked God frequently to take<br \/>\nit away, \u2018My grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in ( you)<br \/>\nweakness\u2019<o:p\/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: black; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 16.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"background: white;\"><span style=\"color: #952004; font-family: &quot;Segoe UI&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;; font-size: 21.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u00a0 Crippled by FEAR ? Isaiah 41:10\u00a0 \u2018Fear 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.\u2019 As I awoke quite early this morning, this verse came to mind. How appropriate it was [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[169735,169736,169737,169738,169739,169740,169741,107011],"tags":[169742,3191,14721],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-347572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-a-troubled-mind","category-christian-thoughts","category-dealing-with-discouragement","category-god-is-with-you","category-hope-for-the-hopeless","category-in-despair","category-overcoming-fear-and-anxiety","category-suffering","tag-crippled","tag-fear","tag-reflections"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>REFLECTIONS : Crippled by Fear ? - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"REFLECTIONS : Crippled by Fear ? - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u00a0 Crippled by FEAR ? Isaiah 41:10\u00a0 \u2018Fear 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.\u2019 As I awoke quite early this morning, this verse came to mind. 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Isaiah 41:10\u00a0 \u2018Fear 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.\u2019 As I awoke quite early this morning, this verse came to mind. How appropriate it was [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572","og_site_name":"Som2ny Network","article_published_time":"2025-12-17T01:28:40+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371"},"headline":"REFLECTIONS : Crippled by Fear ?","datePublished":"2025-12-17T01:28:40+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572"},"wordCount":1540,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"keywords":["Crippled","Fear","Reflections"],"articleSection":["a troubled mind","Christian thoughts","dealing with discouragement","God is with you","hope for the hopeless","in despair","overcoming fear and anxiety","Suffering"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347572","name":"REFLECTIONS : Crippled by Fear ? 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