To Surrender
Fear of the Lord. Do You Live and Work to Serve the Lord?
Eileen Renders
Must we fear the Lord? If so, why would we fear our God who created us and loves us? He has shown us His great love and mercy. Do we live our everyday lives with God as our primary focus, and do we serve Him every day? I believe these are good questions that we all must ask of ourselves and be clear about what we each believe God wants and asks of us. With those questions in mind, I will share with you what I believe. Also, what our Catholic Bible, through the words of Christ Himself, has laid down for each of us.
I have long believed that we need not fear God, as He is loving and merciful. God does want us to live by His Commandments and to frequent the sacraments. This is to show us the way to heaven. He cannot give to us what He truly desires to give to His children when we are disobedient and disrespectful of His teachings and concerns.
Is God showing power and dominance when He asks us to serve Him all the days of our lives? Absolutely not! God wants to ensure our life is full of blessings He gives only to those who truly love, respect, and obey Him. This is not just what I believe, but more importantly, what God has spoken and written about through many Verses in our Catholic Bible.
Let us now, then, review our Creator’s word passed down to us through His Apostles through our Catholic Bible.
Deuteronomy 28:2 “All blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God.”
Psalm 67:1 “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine on us.”
Psalm 115:15 “May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth,”
James 1:2-3 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because
You know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”
James 1:17 ”Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.”
Hebrews 13:5 “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
Matthew 5:10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 6:33 “But seek first his kingdom and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Peter 1-6-7 “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.”
Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Corinthians 12:9 “But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Ecclesiastes 4:9 “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor.”
Colossians 3:14 “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
Proverbs 27:17 “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”
Our burdens are not necessarily taken away by God; however, He can give us the blessing and grace of tolerance, endurance, and understanding. In serving God, we give love, mercy, and kindness to our neighbor in need. Jesus said, “Love one another as I have loved you.” He also said, “I tell you the truth, what you do for the least of your brethren, you do unto Me.”