Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
R. The Lord’s kindness is everlasting to those who fear him.
Written by Ali Hoffman
I’ve been thinking a lot about the gift of the Holy Spirit, fear of the Lord. When I became a Catholic, I never understood why having fear would be a gift and it wasn’t until a couple of months ago when I finally started to have an understanding. When we ask for fear of the Lord, this isn’t a servile fear. It’s not a fear that makes us hide and cower. It’s not even a fear that makes us love God because we fear His wrath. What I’ve been learning is that because God is so mighty, so majestic, so powerful, ever present, and WORTHY of everything, there is a genuine fear of doing anything to disrupt my relationship with Him.
What this fear does is make me mourn my sin in a way that I turn from it and run back to God. When you run TO Him, you begin to see even more of His kindness, how He pardons your iniquities, redeems your life from destruction. When awe and wonder is planted more deeply in your heart and begins to take root, you see how merciful and gracious God is to you. How He is so slow to anger, and abounding in kindness.
I pray for more fear of the Lord everyday so that my eyes would be open from the numbness of my sin that’s settled in. I pray that I may experience His kindness in a deeper way than I have ever before. And I pray that my life would reflect my worship of a God who is worthy of my praise.
In what ways can you live out fear of the Lord today?
Ali Hoffman loves Jesus, her family, donuts, Chipotle, and dancing. She is obsessed with preaching the Gospel, and wants you to know how loved you are. You can find more of her hand lettering work over on Instagram, and see her work on her website.
Pray with today’s psalm.