But He who began a good work

From Fear to Victory: Why You Don't Have to Be Afraid of Anything

Have you ever felt stuck in a maze, going around in circles, wondering if you'll ever find your way out? Maybe you're facing a situation right now that feels impossible, and you're asking yourself, "Will God really come through for me this time?"

I want to share something with you that has completely changed how I face every challenge, every fear, every seemingly impossible situation in my life. It comes from understanding a simple but powerful truth that David wrote about in Psalm 27:1: "The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?"

Understanding What Fear Really Is

"Fear is not just that which I'm scared of that that that the the the guy around the corner that's going to come out and jump scare me, right? That's going to say boo and I'm going to be scared. No, fear is anything that stops me from doing that which God has called me to."

Think about that for a moment. "Anxiety and depression are are fear-based, right? Being worried that I'm going to offend somebody is fear-based. Not wanting to speak to somebody is fear-based. We we try to logic it out so often. We try to justify why we don't do what we do, but at the end of the day, if we could really wrap it up, we would say, 'I'm afraid. I'm afraid that God is not truly who God is.'"

David's Secret to Fearless Living

When David wrote Psalm 27:1, "he's he's looking at at God as his guiding light. He says, 'You are my light and my salvation.'" But here's what's incredible about this - David wasn't writing from a palace during peaceful times. He was often running for his life, facing impossible odds.

"I love this in in the Latin dominus illuminatio may which is this idea that God you are not only my light but God that you actually proclaim the victory for me. Your light proclaims victory for me." It's like seeing "the light at the end of the tunnel, right? When you see the light at the end of the tunnel, you know there's a victory because there's a way out."

One of the most powerful examples of this comes from when David's own son overthrew him. "Do you know what he did? He told his army, 'Don't hurt the boy. Don't don't do anything. I'm going to leave.' Oh, you see, you don't understand that because I'm going to leave. I'm giving my kingdom up because if God really wants me to have the kingdom, God will figure out a way."

David understood something we often miss: "God is sovereign. So if God wants me in power, he will put me back into power. Right? If he wants me to have this victory in this moment, this position, this place, he will put me there. I am not going to do it on my own because he's my light and my salvation."

Nothing Can Separate You From God's Love

The apostle Paul, writing from a Roman prison in Romans 8:38-39, gives us another incredible truth: "For I am sure that neither what? life, nor death, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor heights, nor depth, nor anything else. And all creation will be able to do what? Separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Paul was saying, "I'm sure this the maze and the mess of the maze, the mess of the chaos, what's going on in our country right now, the divisiveness, I'm sure none of that can separate us. I'm sure none of the the the the hypocrisy that I that is around me, the people that are talking bad about me, none of that can separate me."

"If Jesus loves you, isn't that all you need?" But here's the reality check: "We I mean, we just begin to sing about the power of his name and the love, the sweetest, all these other songs. But the truth is, what do we look like on the outside? And how do we act when the when the trials of life, when the struggles of life show up?"

The Promise That Changes Everything

Here's the game-changer, found in Philippians 1:6. Paul, writing from prison again, says: "And I am sure of this that he who began a good work for you or in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."

"Paul uses the same idea here. And he and he says is I am sure of this. I've looked around. I've seen the proof has been in the pudding, right? I I've seen what he's done and I am sure of this. I have bought into it and I realize this is the truth."

Think about this: "You and I, we stub our toe and we go, 'I don't know if God will pull me through this one.' Let's just be honest, right? When the battle rages, when the moments are there, we I I don't know if God can do it. I know he's done it before, but I'm and Paul's saying he's locked up saying, 'I'm sure of this, baby. God's got this.'"

God's Track Record in My Life

Let me share some personal examples of how God has shown His faithfulness. "As a child, as a baby, I remember my mom, my my my parents were not Christians and we were in the hospital. I don't remember this because I was a baby. I had pneumonia." The doctors didn't think I would make it, but my mother prayed, "God, if you are real, I give James to you if you will just save him." The next morning, I was out of the hospital. "God began a good work in that moment."

But it didn't stop there. When I was older, "I'm riding. Do you guys remember those those old people in the house? You guys remember the big wheels?" I got too close to a mean Doberman. "That dog chomps my knee. Will not let go. They're beating him. They finally shoot him to get him off my knee." I still have the scars, but "God who began a good work in me will accomplish that work."

Then there were the ear problems where doctors said I would lose most of my hearing. My mom called the church to pray, and "Next day I go back in to check and figure out what's going on, if there's anything more that they can do. And they look in, they're like, 'We see the scars.' But there's nothing else." My hearing was actually better than before.

The most dramatic was when I was drowning in the Wamtt River. "I remember that moment. I had nothing left in me and I had pulled down. But what they tell me is that he popped out of that water like somebody shoved him up. And I feel like somebody and I remember that somebody like grabbed me at the bottom of that river and he catapulted me."

Biblical Examples of God's Faithfulness

This same principle shows up throughout Scripture. Joseph was "living the dream when he was sold to to by his brothers to the Egyptians. He was living the dream when he was in prison. He was living the dream when he was forgotten by the guys in there. He was living a dream in all those situations that you and I would have said that's a nightmare."

Moses at the Red Sea looked at the Israelites and essentially said, "Hey, he who has done a good started a good work in us. He pulled us out. He had the Passover. He brought us out with the plagues. He brought us out. He who has begun a good work is going to finish that which you started."

David facing Goliath had already fought "the bear and the lion before he ever touched Goliath. God had begun a good work in him" through those earlier battles. When he faced the giant, he essentially said, "God, who began a good work in me will complete that work."

The Hebrew boys - Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego - told King Nebuchadnezzar, "It doesn't matter if we die or we live, our God still reigns because he who began a good work in me will accomplish that good work."

What Are You Really Afraid Of?

"My question for you this morning, church, do you trust in God? Do you trust in God that when you're in the when you're in the maze of life and when you're going around the circle one more time, do you trust God that he's got you?"

"What is it you are afraid of? What is it you're afraid of?" When it comes to sharing your faith, "What are you afraid of? What situation that that you see? Are you afraid of when you look at your finances? When you look at your health, when you look at your marital status, when you look at your relationships, when you look at everything else part of your who are you afraid of? What are you afraid of?"

Here's the truth: "Paul says none of that counts. Oh, they tell you you got a bad heart. Cool. You you you look at your finances, you can't figure out how it's going to work work. Cool. Right. What are you afraid of? Because if God really has you, if you light and your salvation, what are you afraid of?"

"Can I just tell you there's only really one thing? That's you. Your fear separates you from Jesus. Because your fear stops you from doing that which God has called you to do. And when I don't do what God has called me to do, it's called disobedience."

Living From Victory, Not Defeat

Here's what I've learned: "You and I, we we fight from a place of defeat for some reason. And what David says just in Psalms 27, we're going to go somewhere else in just a minute, but just in Psalms 27, he said, 'God, you are my light and my salvation. I fight from a place of victory because you've already won the victory.'"

"We're in the maze guaranteed that we're going to exit. That's a guarantee because God guaranteed it. He began a good work."

Even when we mess up: "Yeah, but but pastor, I'm in the maze because I made made a mistake. Okay. Well, that's where you repent. And guess what? You turn from your wicked ways. He will heal your land. And he will give you victory."

Putting It Into Practice

So how do we live this out practically?

Remember God's Faithfulness: "I want you to think about your life right now. Just take some time. Think about those times. Think about your childhood. Think about those moments and realize God was doing something in that moment. It wasn't just that you got lucky and you were able to survive. No, God had begun a good work in you."

Trust the Process: When you're in difficult circumstances, remember that "he who began a good work in me is going to accomplish it. When I look at it through his lens, I can handle anything. I can face any trial. I can face any Goliath. I can face any furnace. I can face any prison."

Stop Fighting God's Work: "Are you going to allow him to work on you? What stops God from working? Just me. God, don't mess with this part. God, I I I I like how this part of my life is going. God, don't don't deal with me in this area."

Surrender Completely: Instead, say "Here I am, God. Whatever it takes, God. If it's me riding a big wheel and and and dog trying to bite my knee off, please never do that again. But God, if that's what it takes, do it. What? God, whatever. Because I know that once you begin a good work, you're going to bring it to perfection."

Your Victory Is Guaranteed

"Church, we have a lot to shout about. We have a lot to celebrate in Philippians chapter 1 verse 6. That one verse alone should have us have enough shout for the rest of our days. Because if I can get that in my mind and in my heart, if I can connect those two, God, that you have begun a good work, and I know you're going to complete it, whose hands are better to be in than God's?"

The bottom line is this: "He who began a good work, he's already begun it. Understand that every single person in the sound of my voice now, if you believe, if you've accepted Jesus Christ as your personal savior, he's already begun work on you."

So today, whatever maze you're in, whatever fear you're facing, whatever impossible situation is staring you down, remember this: God is your light and your salvation. Nothing can separate you from His love. And He who began a good work in you will complete it.

"Whom shall you fear? What shall you be afraid of? Know that I am in your life? Know that I am there for you in the struggles, in the in the in the moments of confusion, in the moments of chaos."

Your victory isn't just possible—it's guaranteed.