Overcome Fear by Standing up for God

[Overcome Fear by Standing up for God](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Current Teaching Series [Unshakable! Thriving No Matter What Hits You](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Listen to Today's Broadcast](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Overcome Fear by Standing up for God](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) By Rick Warren — June 5, 2020 [Facebook](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Twitter](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Pinterest](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Email](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Devotional image from Rick Warren](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) “Lord, take notice of the threats they have made, and allow us, your servants, to speak your message with all boldness.” Acts 4:29 (GNT) We all have fears. In fact, right now is a very fearful time for us all. Too often, though, we’ve let them rule our lives and stop us from taking a stand for what we know God wants us to do. Like Daniel standing in the lion’s den, we face people and situations that threaten to destroy us and our witness for Christ. But the choice is ours. Will we succumb to our fears, or will we stand up for God in spite of those fears? If you want to overcome fear that’s dragging you down, you need to clearly understand the benefits of choosing to stand up for what God wants. Most importantly, you need to see that doing what God wants you to do is a clear victory over the fear in your life, because fear grows. Every time you give in to a fear, it becomes more intense. Fear grows every time you refuse to do what God wants you to do. Eventually, you’ll feel cornered. And when fear grows, your life shrinks. So what do you do? You follow the lead of early Christians. We’re certainly not the first generation of Christians to face fear. Early believers faced all kinds of persecution. The book of Acts shows us how they stood up to this fear. As Peter and John proclaimed Jesus boldly in Acts 4, they came up against fierce opposition. So they prayed, “Lord, take notice of the threats they have made, and allow us, your servants, to speak your message with all boldness” (Acts 4:29 GNT). The answer to your fear isn’t to give in to it. It’s to move forward boldly despite it. You stand up to the fear. Fear doesn’t respond to logic, so your only chance to get rid of the fear is to trust God and face the fear. Never, ever forget this: God won’t part the Jordan River in front of you until you take your first step (see how God did this for Elijah and Elisha in 2 Kings 2:8). You take a step of faith, and then God shows you the path. That won’t happen if you stand wrapped up in your fear. Take a step in faith today, and watch fear crumble in the process as God guides your steps. [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Talk About It - What fears are you finding difficult to overcome in this time of crisis? Why? - How have you seen fear grow in your life because you gave in to it? How have you seen fear diminish in your life because you stepped out boldly for God? - What does it look like practically to give your fears to God? 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[LEARN MORE](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) 6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Includes 9 full-length messages from Pastor Rick's series Unshakable! Thriving No Matter What Hits You. [LEARN MORE](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) 6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r [Series Summary](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Message 1: When Your World is Shaken Up Message 2: When You're Pressured to Conform Message 3: When Your Beliefs are Belittled Message 4: When You're Asked to Do the Impossible Message 5: When the Heat is On Message 6: When God Tests You with Success Message 7: Are You Learning from Those Who Came Before You? Message 8: Will You Stand Strong for God Publicly? Message 9: The Kind of Prayer God Answers [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r)[Twitter](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Instagram](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) [Linkedin](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r) to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](6Ciz5Ib6N:m:1:2618166767:45357EFAE37F958569BFC40FB1866531:r). © 2020 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. 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