Guard Your Essence

The newspapers, Television broadcasts, words on the streets, in the office corridors are filled with bad news. The ever intruding and constant news is filling people with anxiety, with stress, giving way to irrational decisions and actions... all driven and propelled by the spirit of fear.

The dictionary defines FEAR as thus:

• a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid. or


• To feel a painful apprehension of; to be afraid of; to consider or expect with emotion of alarm or solicitude

To GUARD means to:

• keep safe from harm or danger; protect; watch over
• provide or equip with some safeguard or protective appliance,
• protect from danger; to secure against surprise, attack, or injury; to keep in safety; to defend; to shelter

Fear is the latest weapon of choice the devil is using to get people in his grip and to cause more havoc in the midst of the global crises going on.

But alas, resist this fear we must. It is more important than ever to guard our hearts, minds, spirit and soul from the element of fear.

"Fear is not just a feeling, it a spirit. It is the spirit that paves the way, breaks down the door, opens the pathway, the portal of our hearts (if we let it) to other spirits."

Did you know that when fear takes residence in our hearts, it opens the doors to the most sinister spirits of the underworld. It sends invitation to spirits such as anxiety, depression, loneliness, confusion, irrational decision, anger and even death! For example, yesterday, I read in the news about a man that killed 3 generation of his family because he was depressed about loosing his investment in the global financial crises. To get to this end, it most probably started with the invasion of fear.

For some fear does not manifest in such a drastic way. It's presence is subtle and is portrayed through the change to mindset and thinking and decisions made on a daily basis. It starts with words and thinking such as: we can't, we shouldn't, we must not or we will not. It manifests through worry such as "what shall we eat tomorrow"?


So therefore, we must guard our heart from the invasion of fear as we are thought in Proverbs 4:23, which reads "Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life." We must do whatever it takes so that it does not take residence in our hearts, in our surroundings and in our actions.

Besides as we are thought in 2 Timothy1:7 , God has not given us the spirit of fear, so why should we harbour it? It reads "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind"

So how do we guard ourselves from fear?

We can do the following and much more:

• Decide which economy you reside in; God's or the world. I wrote a post about this called Economy of Residence. To reside in the world's economy means being a prime and easy target for the enemy. To reside in God's economy means being covered by the blood of Jesus and having enough ammunition to resist and win over the spirit of fear.

• Trust God. Isaiah 41:10 reads "Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." As children of the most high God, because of the love he has for us, we must understand, know and believe that all will be okay with us.

• Feed your hearts with a daily with God's word. Romans 10:17 reads "So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ." We must fill our hearts, constantly with God's word; listening and reading. This will guard it when fear comes knocking.

• Be fervent in prayer and in thanksgiving: This we are thought in Philippians 4:6-7 , which reads "6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus"

• Stand on God's word. We have read it,we have prayed and declared it, now we must stand on it. Whenever fear attempts to take residence, we must stand our ground, in the knowledge of who we are with God and his word. We can learn what our response and countenance should from Master Jesus, when he was tempted by the devil as we read in Luke 4:1- 13 (please read for completion).

• Embrace a positive attitude. Our countenance and disposition should show the world that we believe in a living God, who looks after his own.

So here is me encouraging us all to, guard our very essence. Guard our hearts from the spirit of fear and all the others that comes long with it. Reside blissfully in God's economy, stand firm on His word and His promises. In doing so, God's light will shine through us, and His glory shall fill this earth, making Him even more famous in the midst of the crises we see today.

Have a wonderful time letting your light shine for all to see, making God famous along the way.

Much love

Remi Banjo

***by photobucket***