"KEEP IT SPIRITUAL, SAINT!" with Pastor Tim Anderson FEAR ITSELF Last Newsletter, I concluded that the real enemy we face today is not "people" but, to borrow the words of Missionary Paul to first century Christians, "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against... the spiritual forces of evil..." (Ephesians 6:12] In the next few Trinity Newsletters I plan to address the specific challenges that the Evil One is laying out before God's Children of Faith in 2020, and how Jesus is empowering us with his Holy Spirit to be victorious also in these spiritual battles. But first it seems necessary to speak God's Truth to the universal challenge present in all of these things by borrowing the diagnosis President Franklin D. Roosevelt offered during his first inaugural address to this nation, then in the throes of the Great Depression: "We have nothing to Fear but Fear Itself." You and I both know that our human response in instances of extreme fear occurs in one of three ways: Freeze Fight or Flight. Make no mistake the Devil's First Priority every day and in every way is to cause FEAR to overtake our MNDS, our HEARTS and (even] our SOULS. Why? Because once the Devil achieves this goal, we are most likely to forget the two most important words that God speaks to us: "FEAR NOT". And immediately we begin acting as if we are again, "Sheep without a Shepherd." [Matthew 9:36 and Mark 6:34] Remember the first words spoken by the angels who announced the birth of our Savior? "FEAR NOT. "Also, in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus delegated a whole section to the topic, "DON'T BE AFRAID" And as Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. John's Gospel quotes the Old Testament Book of Zechariah, "FEAR NOT, daughter of Zion, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt...". And in both Matthew and Mark the angels first words to the women at the empty tomb are: "FEAR NOT" Then the first words of Jesus in John's Revelation are, "DO NOT BE AFRAID! Are you picking up a powerful theme here, In fact. I heard a pastor recently say that Scripture says "FEAR NOT" some 365 times. Once for each day this year? Novel Idea: Each and every time the Devil attempts to overwhelm us with fear this month, let's remember our Good Shepherd's final reminder: "...Surely I am with you always until the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20] - Pastor Tim Lord, we earnestly pray for a Spiritual Awakening in our country. Amen. Trinity Lutheran - Culver "KEEP IT SPIRITUAL, SAINT!" with Pastor Tim Anderson FEAR ITSELF Last Newsletter, I concluded that the real enemy we face today is not "people" but, to borrow the words of Missionary Paul to first century Christians, "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against... the spiritual forces of evil..." (Ephesians 6:12] In the next few Trinity Newsletters I plan to address the specific challenges that the Evil One is laying out before God's Children of Faith in 2020, and how Jesus is empowering us with his Holy Spirit to be victorious also in these spiritual battles. But first it seems necessary to speak God's Truth to the universal challenge present in all of these things by borrowing the diagnosis President Franklin D. Roosevelt offered during his first inaugural address to this nation, then in the throes of the Great Depression: "We have nothing to Fear but Fear Itself." You and I both know that our human response in instances of extreme fear occurs in one of three ways: Freeze Fight or Flight. Make no mistake the Devil's First Priority every day and in every way is to cause FEAR to overtake our MNDS, our HEARTS and (even] our SOULS. Why? Because once the Devil achieves this goal, we are most likely to forget the two most important words that God speaks to us: "FEAR NOT". And immediately we begin acting as if we are again, "Sheep without a Shepherd." [Matthew 9:36 and Mark 6:34] Remember the first words spoken by the angels who announced the birth of our Savior? "FEAR NOT. "Also, in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus delegated a whole section to the topic, "DON'T BE AFRAID" And as Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. John's Gospel quotes the Old Testament Book of Zechariah, "FEAR NOT, daughter of Zion, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt...". And in both Matthew and Mark the angels first words to the women at the empty tomb are: "FEAR NOT" Then the first words of Jesus in John's Revelation are, "DO NOT BE AFRAID! Are you picking up a powerful theme here, In fact. I heard a pastor recently say that Scripture says "FEAR NOT" some 365 times. Once for each day this year? Novel Idea: Each and every time the Devil attempts to overwhelm us with fear this month, let's remember our Good Shepherd's final reminder: "...Surely I am with you always until the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20] - Pastor Tim Lord, we earnestly pray for a Spiritual Awakening in our country. Amen. Trinity Lutheran - Culver