DEFEATING FEAR AND SHAME Pastor Dennis Clanton

---

DEFEATING FEAR AND SHAME Pastor Dennis Clanton Woodland Church Sunday, April 19, 2020 “I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears. Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.” (Psalm 34:4–5, NLT) “A person who fears God deals responsibly with all of reality, not just a piece of it.” (Ecclesiastes 7:18, Message) SHADOWS OF FEAR AND SHAME. 1. MY EMOTIONAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH “…I was sick when I first brought you the Good News.” (Galatians 4:13, NLT) 2. MY RELATIONSHIPS “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31, NLT) 3. MY CIRCUMSTANCES “Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine give to them by the king” (Daniel 1:8a, NLT) 4. MY CONSCIENCE “If there were worshipers who already have their sins washed away and their consciences made clear, there would not be any need to go on offering sacrifices.” (Hebrews 10:2, CEV) THE ANTIDOTE FOR FEAR AND SHAME

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28–30, Message) GROWTHWORK MAKE GODLY CHOICES... 1. …FOR MY HEALTH “you made my body, Lord; now give me sense to heed your laws.” (Psalm 119:73, LB) 2. …FOR MY RELATIONSHIPS “There is no room for love in fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.” (1 John 4:18, Message) 3. …FOR MY FAITH “I will praise the Lord no matter what happens. I will constantly speak of his glories and grace” (Psalm 34:1, LB) 4. …FOR MY THOUGHT LIFE “…Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think…” (Romans 12:2b, NLT) “Fix your thoughts … think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” (Philippians 4:8, NLT) 5. CHOOSE JESUS CHRIST AS YOUR SAVIOR. “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NLT)

BIBLE REFERENCE ABBREVIATIONS 1. NLT – New Living Translation – my favorite 2. Message – The Message – a great addition to your library 3. LB – Living Bible – a gift from my Dad for my 17th birthday, still love to read it 4. CEV – Contemporary English Version – great for study, for ease of understanding uses modern contemporary phraseology for biblical words with deep theological meaning.