Whatever accomplishments I might have achieved, whatever possessions I might have owned, whatever status I might have attained, even my reputation — those things won’t fit inside my urn. Nor do those things define me in the eyes of God. He is not impressed by the awards hanging on the wood-paneled walls of my paid-off house in this upscale California suburb. Even my new iPhone 12 Max Pro with 128 GB of memory does not raise His eyebrows.
In the Scriptures, the fear of God is used in a positive manner. There are a plethora of examples wherein fearing God is beneficial. Here is a smattering: “The fear of the Lord is clean” (Psalms 19:9). It is wholesome and for our good! “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments” (Psalms 111:10). Fear of the Lord can bring about obedience. Consider Hebrews 11:7: Noah, because of his faith, “moved with godly fear, [and] prepared an ark for the saving of his household.” God has mercy on those who fear Him (Luke 1:50). “The fear of the LORD leads to life, and he who has it will be satisfied” (Proverbs 19:23).
That is God’s recipe for replacing worried thoughts with good thoughts. The thought is a temptation, and God has given us the ability to decide whether we are going to take that thought and form it into worry and fear, or if we are going to reject that thought and think about what is true, what is honest, what is just, what is pure, etc. Whenever you catch that temptation to worry coming to your mind, reject that thought, lock it up, don’t imagine more details of it, don’t scare your body into a fear reaction. Instead, identify something that is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, or well spoken of.