March 19, 2016

Berry's Bible Study - Fear and Discipline

I cannot believe the last time I posted in the Berry Bible Study series was all the way back in January. I was supposed to be shooting for at least twice a month. Well, if I'm being honest, there is a reason why I stopped. The end of January into the first week of February was a very very trying period. I'm talking slipping into depression, not reading the Bible at all, barely being able to pray. It was very very very bad. I'm still suffering for it, actually.

But I know that God is calling out to me and waiting with open arms. He wants me to cast all my cares, worries, and fears on Him. And trust me, I have plenty of those at the moment. Instead of hiding and running, I'm just going to go on and do what I know is right.



Before leaving, I was worried about a lot of things. I would say my mind was clogged with worry and fear. Fear of the uncertainty like I mentioned in previous blog posts. Moving without the prospect of a job is one that has had a grip on me. So much so that I've even been afraid to look at my resume, or to browse and see what jobs are out there.

My first week back in Atlanta, I went to our Connect Group, and coincidentally, one of the verses mentioned was the one above from 2 Timothy 1:7. What struck me about it was not just that fear is not from God, but that the verse tied in Power, Love and my Word for the Year - DISCIPLINE. It was almost as if God was saying to me, "Berry you have forgotten. You've let your self-discipline go, and instead replaced it with fear." Like, I would not ordinarily put fear and discipline in the same sentence, but think about it... a way to overcome fear is through discipline, isn't it? Something as mundane as my fear of push-ups and skipping/jump rope were alleviated through regular (almost daily) attempts to conquer those tasks. The same way I have a fear over job-searching, I can apply self-discipline and make sure I review my resume and apply to different companies daily, until I get the one God has set aside for me. The way I've been afraid to go to God in complete submission... I can resume my daily Bible reading and praying, even if it's for 3 minutes a day.

Usually, most people would attach the Fear part to the Power part of the verse, and while that is still true, I think that Self-Discipline definitely has a lot to do with it.

What do you think?

6 comments:

  1. Beautiful insight, Berry.
    I think this fear comes cause we think he's just a fiction that he isn't really with us (read Isa 41:10)
    In as much as God wants us to fear(respect) him, he also wants he's children not to fear any-other thing else that's not of him just obey him and do all his biddings and have fun too( in his right hand there are pleasures for ever more psalm16:11)...I don't know if I'm making sense. Take your earthly father for example, your respect/'fear' him is supposed to come naturally cause his your father. Some of us call him father constantly and consistently hurt his feelings and then we say please forgive me on a consistent note(imagine saying sorry to the same person countless times...ugh!)...
    I feel I've deviated from the discussion...lol
    I guess it's a happy Sunday indeed!

    www.beautifullyjune.blogspot.com‎ 

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    1. Hey June. Thanks for sharing. That's the thing about the Bible - you can tie pretty much everything together, so it's okay. I agree that it must be very frustrating to God to have us constantly doing wrong and coming back for forgiveness. We all have to be thankful for His grace o.

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  2. I saw this verse in a frame at the house of a designer I had a shoot for recently and it hit me again . So now, I always try to remind myself of that whenever I start having fears.

    Thanks for sharing Berry.

    www.cassiedaves.com

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    1. It's a very good verse to commit to memory isn't it?!

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  3. Berry, so happy you are back to the Bible study. We should do a youtube collab!
    Back to the subject, I really like this verse because it is all about what God has given us. So the spirit of power, love and self discipline already exists in us and we just have to activate it. I too go through seasons like you mentioned and what really helped me was having a 'Faith buddy'- that christian friend that holds you up and reminds you of God's promises over coffee and cookie dough icecream! People will say pray, read your bible and everything but when you are in that dark place....it is the last thing you feel like doing no offence to the #superholychristians. That being said self discipline comes from first receiving the power of God in your life, then his love and the self discipline will be a lot easier.
    Hang in there sis xx

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    1. We totally should!!! The collabo!

      I love how you broke this verse down, graduating from the power aka grace of God, then love, and finally self-discipline.

      That's why I enjoy these posts because you get different perspectives on just one passage alone.

      Thanks Nemi!

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