When You Let Fear Rule Your Life...

    Fear is a strong emotion.  It is so strong that it will rule you if you allow it.  It is not something you can ignore or downplay.  It is real and must be dealt with face on.  Knowing this does not make it any easier.

    Judah married a woman that was not a follower of God.  That is only a problem because when people do not believe as you do and you let them into your intimate life, then they will influence how you believe.  They introduce a fear into your belief system that was not there before: doubt.  Sometimes that can be a good thing because it forces you to decide what you really believe, but for a weak or new believer, it can be destructive.

    Judah's children did not honor God.  The oldest was Er.  His wife was named Tamar and his evil lifestyle left her a widow.  Since she did not have any children, she was given to Onan, Judah's second son, as her kinsman redeemer.  He denied giving her a child and God saw this as evil.  Onan too was taken.  What would be come of Tamar now?  Judah told her to live as a widow and when his last son, Shelah, was old enough, he would marry her.  Judah was afraid that she was cursed and did not want to give his last son over to her.  His fear led him to treat her unfairly and unkindly.  

    Judah became a widow and Shelah grew up.  Tamar saw all this while keeping her distance.  Judah began to miss the comforts of marriage.  Tamar was not a stupid woman.  She understood what was happening to her.  She had been observing it all.  One night Judah saw her and thought she was a prostitute, so he hired her.  She became pregnant with his child in that one encounter.  

    When Judah found out she was pregnant not knowing it was his.  He insulted her and wanted her to be burned as an adulterous.  He didn't want her near his family out of fear, but he did not want her to have a life either.  When he discovered the truth a new fear took him.  This was a fear of discovery.  People believe that what they do in secret will never catch up, but it always finds a way to be revealed.  She gave him twins: Perez and Zerah.  He covered it up and did what he had too, but things could have been so much easier if he had understood how his fear was controlling him.

    Go to God with your fears.  He has a way of removing them or using them.  Go to Him to avoid sinning out of your fear.  Going to Him removes the power that drives the fear.  Living in fear is not living at all.  It only leads to a life of regret or embarrassment.

Genesis 38