What Do I Let Lead Me and How Do I Lead?

Leading others by fear is a telltale we aren't looking at Jesus.  Leading others by inspiration, vision, and our own personal growth in the life of Jesus means we are becoming like Him.

We manipulate others into our fears without trying. This is an antichrist spirit. Our fears can accomplish no righteousness.

We aren't more loving, more righteous, more concerned, or more sober than God.  Being concerned everyone isn't taking a problem seriously enough isn't a sign of spiritual maturity... It's a sign of arrogance.  It's a gate other than Jesus into righteousness... Fear is for thieves and robbers.

Many raise their kids by fear, rather than giving them a vision of how satisfying a life well-lived in God is.  I wish I would have known this early in my life. I would have encouraged my kids much differently.  I learned this while raising them.  Much of our anxiety in life comes from fear being used to encourage us to be righteous.

Fear can not truly bring righteousness.  A vision of Jesus and His goodness is the only thing that truly changes us for the better:

2 Corinthians 3:16-18 NLT — But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

We behold and become.  If we behold Jesus, we become like Him. If we behold fearful outcomes, we become like them.

Man is dust without God.  Our main concern should be seeing God's emotions about ourselves, our challenges, and our situations, not being God to the world.

He's joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, gentle, self controlled, loving, faithful, and good!  These are the emotions and personality God approaches all human issues with.  If we are mature, we do, too.

Never follow a fearful person (but love them, of course). They are never leading you to God.  

Listen to the words of those you run with, are they fearful words that appeal to your self-righteousness, doubt and fear, or are they faith-filled words that call you into the truth of who God is, what He is doing, and why? Discard fear-filled admonitions. Embrace faith-filled ones.  

Fear-filled words, though they sound Biblical, always offer false hopes of fleshy victory, while ignoring the true hope of our flesh dying and new life coming.

Faith-filled words protect us from false hope that always disappoints and they draw us to the true hope which endures the hard things that must happen. The fear of the Lord, which is clean and the beginning of wisdom, is faith in God. It's the only acceptable fear.

1 John 4:16-21 NLT — We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love.

God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. We love each other because he loved us first. If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.