Even Fear

Published: April 6, 2023, midnight

b'When was the last time you were afraid? Maybe you\\u2019re afraid of bugs,\\nheights, or needles. Maybe you have emotional fears, such as being afraid\\nof loss, pain, or rejection. Everybody is afraid of something. Personally,\\nI have a big fear of needles\\u2014I can\\u2019t even look at one without getting\\nchills down my spine. Not only am I afraid of needles, but I also have\\nother fears, like losing my family or friends.\\n.\\nGod understands all our fears. When Jesus was praying in the garden of\\nGethsemane, the Bible says Jesus felt \\u201cdeeply distressed and troubled\\u2026\\noverwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death\\u201d (Mark 14:33-34). Jesus was\\nin anguish. Even after an angel strengthened Him, \\u201chis sweat was like drops\\nof blood\\u201d (Luke 22:44). Can you imagine being so anxious that you sweat\\nblood?\\n.\\nJesus is fully God, and He is also fully human and experienced human\\nemotion. This is one reason we know that He can relate to us. Jesus sweat\\nblood in the garden because He knew the excruciating pain He would soon\\nexperience on the cross, and it caused Him anxiety and anguish. However,\\nJesus ended His prayer by accepting God the Father\\u2019s will over His own.\\nJesus, God the Son, surrendered everything over to God the Father and\\ntrusted the Father to provide and take care of Him.\\n.\\nEven though Jesus trusted the Father to raise Him from the dead after three\\ndays in the grave, going to the cross was still incredibly hard and\\npainful. Whenever we are afraid, we can remember that Jesus knows just how\\nwe feel, and we can trust Him with everything. Because Jesus faced the\\nterrors of death for us when He died on the cross and rose from the grave,\\nwe can now be in relationship with God. If we\\u2019ve put our trust in Jesus, we\\ncan come to God with everything we experience\\u2014including fear. He\\nunderstands, and He longs to draw us near in His arms and empower us to\\nfollow Him, even in the face of fear. \\u2022 Lydia Lancie\\n.\\n\\u2022 According to Hebrews 12:2, why was Jesus willing to endure the cross? \\n.\\n\\u2022 What kinds of things make you afraid? How could it be comforting to know\\nthat Jesus doesn\\u2019t just know how we feel, He also empathizes with us?\\n(Hebrews 4:14-16) \\n.\\n\\u2022 Consider taking a moment to thank Jesus for what He\\u2019s done for us, and\\ntalk to Him about any fears that come to mind.\\n.\\nAnd being in anguish, he [Jesus] prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was\\nlike drops of blood falling to the ground. Luke 22:44 (NIV)\\n\\xa0\\nRead Verses:\\nLuke.22.39-Luke.22.53|Heb.12.2|Ps.34.4-Ps.34.5'