No fear

“But He said to them, ‘It is I; don’t be afraid.’” John 6:20
This verse comes from the account of Jesus walking on the water. He had sent the disciples on ahead to cross the Sea of Galilee in the boat, but they were struggling. As He walked on the water towards them, they saw Him and were terrified (Greek phobeo, from which we get ‘phobia’). But He calms them by saying, ‘Don’t be afraid’ (phobeo, again).
Jesus’ presence with us is enough to drive out any fear we have. For the disciples, it was fear of the unknown – they didn’t know who or what was walking towards them on the water. We can become afraid of the direction that circumstances are taking in our life. But we don’t have to be, because God is in control of our circumstances. He is with us, even though we might not recognise Him at first.
It is said (although I haven’t been able to confirm this) that there are 365 passages in the Bible that say ‘fear not’ or ‘don’t be afraid’, one for each day of the year. Every day we can remind ourselves that we don’t need to be afraid.
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18). As we are made more perfect in God’s love, we will have less fear. Rest in the presence of God, for He is love.