Live in God, Not in Fear

H/T to the Bible Geek! (aka Mark Hart)

It’s an interesting fact that the command repeated most often throughout the Scriptures is “be not afraid” or (its close grammatical relative) “do not fear”. The command not to fear (given to us by God) is repeated even more times throughout the 73 books, than the command to love. That should tell you something about how badly God wants us to live in Him and not in fear.

Think about that for a moment -- Live in God, Not in Fear. Pretty powerful in its simplicity and strength.

There are great places throughout the Bible that speak of courage and the need to trust in God in the face of fear. Here are some places (in the NAB Bible) that you can read and pray through. In fact there are 51 places -- pretty good number for a way to start each day of summer! We are going to start the second week of June and read one a day on weekday mornings -- that takes us through mid August.

Some of the Fear verses in Scripture (A few of these include more than one verse):

Gospels (#1 - #15) - Old Testament (#16 - #25) - New Testament (#26 - #51)

1. MT 1:20
2. MT 10:26, 28, 31
3. MT 14:27
4. MT 17:7
5. MT 28:5, 10
6. MK 5:36
7. MK 6:50
8. LK 1:13, 30
9. LK 2:10
10. LK 5:10
11. LK 8:50
12. LK 12:4-5, 7, 32
13. JN 6:20
14. JN 12:15
15. JN 14:27
16. ACTS 9:31
17. ACTS 18:9
18. ACTS 27:24
19. 2COR 7:1
20. HEB 13:6
21. 1PT 2:17
22. 1PT 3:6,14
23. 1JN 4:18
24. RV 1:17
25. RV 2:10
26. DEUT 1:21
27. DEUT 31:8
28. JOSH 1:9
29. JOSH 10:8
30. JOSH 11:6
31. JUDG 6:23
32. 1SAM 12:20
33. 1CHRON 22:13
34. 2CHRON 20:15, 17
35. 1MACC 2:62
36. PS 3:7
37. PS 23:1
    
38. PS 46:3
39. PS 49:17
40. PS 53:6
41. PS 56:5, 12
42. PROV 3:25
43. ISA 7:4
44. ISA 10:24
45. JER 42:11
46. JER 44:10
47. BARUCH 6:14, 22, 28, 64, 68
48. HOSEA 10:3
49. HAG 2:5
50. ZECH 8:13, 15
51. MAL 3:5

Remember – there is no need to fear. God is in control.

TU again to Mark for organizing these scriptures for us! If your parish is looking for a speaker (especially for the youth group ages), I highly recommend the Bible Geek, Mark Hart! Here is an example of his style via a YouTube clip. Enjoy!

This is Why God Made Voices

Tonight I had the privilege of listening to a concert by the Notre Dame Glee Club. I can truly say that these 40 young men are amazingly talented, disciplined and totally engaging.

Recognized as one of the finest all male collegiate choral groups in the country, the University of Notre Dame Glee Club has a rich history of singing & brotherhood spanning the last 89 years.

More than 2,000 young men have sung with the Club over the years, combining the rich traditions of Notre Dame with the highest standards of artistic excellence. Since 1915, the members of the Glee Club have enjoyed an exciting fraternal organization combined with an intensive study of vocal technique and musical styles. The group tours from coast to coast and around the world. As musical ambassadors of Notre Dame, the Glee Club has always been welcomed with warmth and enthusiasm. Tonight they outdid themselves.

A friend of mine sings in the Glee Club. I knew he could sing . . . . but I just didn't know he could sing like this. Jeff, you are the best! I believe that in heaven I would like to hear music like the music you made tonight.

Here is a little tribute to that friend!