Fear Asks “What If?” Faith Says “Even If.”

Fear has a way of hiding beneath things we don't normally call fear.

We fear being wrong.

We fear missing out.

We fear losing what we have.

We fear someone leaving.

We fear being alone.

We fear not having enough.

We fear what tomorrow might bring.

And if we're willing to look beneath some of those fears, we may discover an uncomfortable question:

Do I really trust God with what I'm afraid to lose?

Fear Isn't Always the Problem

Being afraid doesn't automatically mean you don't have faith.

David wrote:

“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”— Psalm 56:3 KJV

Notice David didn't say, “I never get afraid.”

He said, “When I am afraid, I will trust.”

There is a difference between feeling fear and allowing fear to lead you.

Fear may knock on the door, but it doesn't have to be invited in and given control of the house.

The question isn't simply, “Am I afraid?”

The better question is:

“What am I going to do with my fear?”

Sometimes Fear Reveals What We're Trying to Control

Why are we afraid of being wrong?

Sometimes it's because being wrong requires humility.

Why are we afraid of missing an opportunity?

Sometimes it's because we believe everything depends upon us making exactly the right move.

Why are we terrified of losing something?

Sometimes it's because we've convinced ourselves we cannot live without it.

That's where fear can begin revealing a lack of surrender.

Proverbs tells us:

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.”— Proverbs 3:5 KJV

Fear wants guarantees.

Fear wants explanations.

Fear wants control.

Trust wants God.

Fear says, “I need to know what's going to happen.”

Trust says, “I don't know what's going to happen, but I know who God is.”

Your Father Already Knows

Jesus spoke directly about worry in Matthew 6.

He talked about food, clothing, provision, and tomorrow. Then He made an incredibly comforting statement:

“For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.”— Matthew 6:32 KJV

God already knows what you need.

Think about that.

Before you started worrying about it, God knew.

Before you lost sleep over it, God knew.

Before you started trying to figure out how you were going to fix it, God knew.

Jesus didn't promise that nothing difficult would ever happen.

He reminded us that our Father knows what we need.

Maybe peace begins when we finally believe that.

Perfect Love Casts Out Fear

First John says:

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment.”— 1 John 4:18 KJV

Sometimes we read that and think the answer is simply to stop being afraid.

But what if we're approaching it backward?

Maybe the answer isn't trying harder to remove fear.

Maybe the answer is receiving more deeply the love God is already pouring out.

God isn't struggling to love you.

The question is whether you're living like someone who believes you are loved by Him.

We can know God loves us intellectually while living every day as though we're on our own.

We can quote His promises while desperately trying to control every outcome.

We can preach about His faithfulness while secretly wondering whether He will actually take care of us.

John says something just a few verses earlier:

“And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us.”— 1 John 4:16 KJV

Known and believed.

It's possible to know something without truly trusting it.

At some point, what we know about God's love has to become something we actually rest in.

Fear Says “What If?”

Fear loves those two words.

What if?

What if I lose it?

What if they leave?

What if I'm wrong?

What if I fail?

What if the money doesn't come?

What if the door closes?

What if tomorrow doesn't work out the way I planned?

But faith has another response:

Even if.

Even if I lose something, God remains.

Even if someone walks away, God remains.

Even if I discover I was wrong, God can correct me.

Even if the door closes, God can lead me somewhere else.

Even if my plans fail, God remains faithful.

Even if tomorrow looks nothing like I expected—

God is still God.

David understood this:

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil…”

Why?

The valley was still there.

The danger was still real.

David gives the answer:

“For thou art with me.”— Psalm 23:4 KJV

God's presence changed the power of the fear.

What Are You Afraid to Lose?

Maybe that's the question we need to bring before Jesus today.

What am I holding onto so tightly because I don't trust God with what would happen if I lost it?

A relationship?

A position?

Money?

Your reputation?

Your plans?

Your comfort?

Your ability to understand what's happening?

Bring it to Jesus.

You don't have to pretend you're not afraid.

You can simply pray:

“Jesus, I'm afraid, but I trust You.”

I don't understand, but I trust You.

I don't know what tomorrow holds, but I trust You.

I don't want to lose this, but I trust You.

I don't know how You're going to provide, but I trust You.

Fear asks:

“What if?”

Faith answers:

“Even if.”

Because our confidence isn't that we'll never lose anything.

Our confidence is that whatever happens, we will never lose Him.

So maybe overcoming fear isn't about trying harder to become fearless.

Maybe it's about finally opening our hands, receiving the love God has already been pouring out, and saying:

“Jesus, I trust You with what happens next.”

Pastor Scott