Cultivating the Fear of God

Note: Today’s post is the third in a series of posts about the Fear of God. Click the recent posts on the right to see previous posts.

I’ll be honest and say I don’t automatically make it a priority to approach God daily with reverence, humility and worship. My flesh is constantly warring against the desire of the Spirit to commune with God. So how can we cultivate the fear of God in our lives?

The first thing I’ll say may seem obvious: it has to be a daily exercise. When I first started working out again after my third child was born, I was really hoping I’d be able to pick right back up where I left off and be able to do everything I had easily done before. But, alas, the gift of motherhood weighed heavily on my abs (and other places, too). So I started over. And for a pretty long time, every day felt like starting over. Eventually, though, I found a routine and got back into the rhythm of exercise, and it became fun again.

When you’ve fallen out of the habit of communing deeply with God (or have never really begun), starting up may feel really awkward and difficult. But it’s just like exercising your body – with time, you will gain muscle and become more adept at the disciplines. Set aside time each day to enter His throne room and meditate on His character.

Second, study Scripture that reminds your soul of its position before God. Remember that when you view Him correctly, you will automatically see yourself correctly as well. Let’s take Psalm 103:15-19 as an example:

“As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.”

Reading this passage of Scripture should stir us toward the fear of God. We are futile and small, but His throne and His love are eternal. This should produce worship in our hearts because He has poured out this love on us! We are among those who will see Him face to face in His throne room someday. So remind yourself of these truths. Write them down as prayers and think about them often throughout the day.

Finally, remember that reverence and humility can be done from afar, but worship requires that we draw near. I have great reverence and humility toward tornadoes, but I have no desire to get close to one! Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you and show Himself to you.

In our next post we’ll talk about the fear of man and how it detracts from and can eventually destroy our fear of God.

Questions for Reflection:

• What are some of your obstacles to entering God’s presence?
• Who are a couple of people in your life you can ask to hold you accountable to spending daily time in His presence?

Passages to Study: Jeremiah 32:36-41; John 12:1-8; Luke 1:46-55