Fear, Crazy Town and T.R.U.S.T. 

How fear can take to crazy town and how TRUST in Jesus can get us out. 

Has there ever been a time in your life when fear drove you to “crazy town”?  

I know, I know! “Crazy town” behavior was totally justified in the moment, right? Ha! Well, I am right there with you. Let me share a little of my own “crazy town” with you and how God rescued me.  

When I first understood that my brother was struggling with alcoholism, I became the “super sleuth”. I took on the role of being the Sherlock Holmes in our family. My fear of him drinking drove me to search his car, his office, his gym bag, work bag, and his home to find and discard any alcohol I found.  

I ascertained from my fear that if I could remove all temptation to drink, Zach would struggle less.  

I took this role very seriously. The fear of alcoholism consumed my mental, physical, emotional and relational energies. This fear drove me to lie about what I was looking for. I lied to the people I worked with and my family.  

I was too fearful to let anyone else in. I was ashamed because in my heart I knew that what I was doing was wrong and wasn’t helping. But this searching became an obsession for a time. I remember vividly the day when I was caught red-handed by my husband Marshall.  

Marshall was willing to speak truth to me, at a time when I needed truth, without heaping shame on me for the behavior. I believe it was his truth and grace in the moment that helped me pull out this fear. The chapter Searchlight Confessions in my book Ascent to Hope expounds on this dilemma and fear I had to fight through, if you want to learn more about walking this out.  

Imagine my delight when I read the encounter of David in 1 Samuel 21 David, hiding from King Saul, in Philistine territory, found himself before Abimelech. In his fear for his life, “he pretended to go crazy, pounding his head on the city gate and foaming at the mouth, spit dripping from his beard.” (vs 12-15 MSG) 

That’s right. The man God chose to be King of Israel, a warrior, who slew Goliath as a teenager, got caught in a moment of panic and fear. And his choice in that moment was to act crazy. Yep, we are not alone in our trip to crazy town. 

What I love about this story is that it makes David so relatable. He acted out of fear just as I acted out of fear. The reality is that if we let it, fear can lead us to do things, say things, and believe things that are “crazy.”  

David penned Psalm 34 as a prayer and praise to God for rescuing Him from the hand of Abimelech. The reality is that even in the fear, even in the erratic behavior God was merciful and delivered David. Abimelech could have responded by throwing him into the dungeon.  

God extended His mercy to me as well, by sending Marshall to encourage me, to call me out and to set me on a right-minded path. In the moments of my fear, I was crying out to God. God help me. Help Zach. I believe David was too based on Psalm 34.  

Psalm 34:4 says, “I sought the Lord, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears.” (ESV) 

In those moments of fear, I was acting in fear – all while praying. And God in those moments God’s love and mercy prevails. When we seek the Lord, he hears us. He answers us. He delivers us from the fears. 

For me, this fear was not gone all at once. It was a gradual choice of letting go. And God faithfully delivering me, repeatedly. Releasing the fear was not about Zach getting better, it was about my trust and confidence in God.  

I have heard fear described as an acronym.  

F- False 

E- Evidence 

A- Appearing 

R- Real 

Fear exposes a belief we have that is based on false evidence.  What false evidence have you bought into? Is it the belief that everything rests on your shoulders to provide, fix or make better? What false evidence do you believe that is producing fear? 

What fear is plaguing your heart and mind? Are you worried about your job situation? Or a struggling family member? Are you fearful for your kids or grandkids and what they are exposed to? Are you fearful for our country and the election coming up? Are you afraid of disease and germs? 

Have your fears lunged into unrecognizable and uncharacteristic behavior? If you have found yourself behaving in a way you never thought you would, lean into God. Let Him deliver you from this fear. Seek Him afraid. Seek Him with fear in hand. He knows you are fearful. It is His pleasure as your God and Heavenly Father to rescue you from your fear. 

When we seek the Lord, Jeremiah 29:13 tells us that we will find Him when we seek him with all our hearts. Then we are told in Matthew 6:33 to Seek His kingdom first and then everything else will fall into place. Psalm 34:4 reflects the result of the seeking that David did amid His fear.  

Instead of living in the F.E.A.R., we can build confident T.R.U.S.T.  

T – Turn your eyes to Jesus 

R – Rest in His promise 

U- Unload your fears 

S – Seek His ways 

T- Talk about His faithfulness 

Walking out these steps of TRUST will enable you to hand over the fears to God. Seeking Him, His ways, and rehearsing His faithfulness to yourself will build your faith and quiet the fear.  

There are countless fears that arise in this life. What we do with those fears makes the difference. Maybe your fears have taken control of you, and you have behaved a little crazy like David and me. But the good news is, God is merciful. And even in our crazy, He will hear us, answer us and deliver us from the fear.  

We need to take notice that God delivers us from the fear. The Psalm doesn’t assume that we will be delivered from the circumstance, but the fear itself. Sometimes He does deliver us from the circumstance too. Sometimes, in His sovereignty He doesn’t. I don’t know the why behind His ways, I just know it is my delight to trust Him. 

May you, like David, be able to declare, “I sought the Lord, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears.” (Psalm 34:4) 

Let’s press into God this week and ask for His grace to seek Him despite the fear we are facing, and lean into Him to deliver us, knowing that as we seek Him, He will indeed answer us.  

This week on ALL IN, we are diving deep into this verse from Psalm 34. And I would love you to join me, because I know that God wants you to live free from the live-controlling fears that have your bound. Together we will study, learn some practical tips and tools and then pray together.  

Join me this week, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8:30am on Spotify or most podcast platforms.