Let Me Be Frank… (facts)

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding.  His praise endures forever!
Psalm 111:10

 
“Facts over fear.”  It’s a tagline that a news anchor uses nowadays when referring to a segment on COVID-19.  The idea is that the more facts you gather, the more informed you are.  And the more informed you are, the more your fear subsides.  When Marea and I heard his tagline for the first time, it caught us off guard.  It’s obviously a play on words because many of us having been using the quote, “Faith over fear” for years.  So how do we abide in the “fear of the Lord” when everyone tells us not to “live in fear.”
 
The psalmist tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Psalm 111 tells of God’s greatness and His good works and culminates with a “wisdom saying” that outlines the proper human response to the Lord’s greatness.
 
Basically, we praise the Lord for who He is and what He has done.  And when we start there, knowing that God is for us and not against us, we do not fear what comes next.  But there is another definition for “fear” that we must understand.
 
The fear of the Lord is about reverence and humility.  We bow in the presence of a King.  When our hearts are rooted in this reverence and humility we approach our lives in a way that honors Christ.  This is the beginning of wisdom.
 
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.
Proverbs 3:5

 
I’ve held this verse close to my heart for several years.  It’s helped me process feelings and situations when I am overwhelmed and I don’t know what to do next.  And, in this current landscape, with all the what-if’s and what-next’s, it’s easy to wonder if God is even listening anymore.
 
But Proverbs 3:5 isn’t a prescription for blind faith.  It’s not an excuse to disregard science or facts.  It’s simply placing our focus where it should have been all along…  When we fear the Lord we’ll begin to abide in the knowledge and wisdom of His Kingdom.  We won’t look for someone to explain our current situation, because we already have a King who is mighty to save. 
 
Are you approaching life in a way that honors Christ?  Do you fear the Lord and come before Him in reverence and humility?  Information is helpful, but wisdom changes the game.  And true wisdom comes from God.
 
Can’t wait to worship with you this weekend!
We are Central… and we’re in this TOGETHER! 
SOLI DEO GLORIA
-F