Opposites

[Love is the opposite of Fear
Hope is the opposite of Shame
And Love and Hope are the Foundation of true Faith—the fierce sort of Faith
Love is Relentless—it sees beyond faults and weaknesses
Hope is Unyielding—it sees beyond condemnation and failings
And Peace comes alongside them, reassuring Truth
And Truth acts as the glue binding them all together to uphold the tower of Faith
Faith stands tall then, acting as a beacon of the fruit accomplished below]

I wrote that in October 2018, after my major Shame Surgery (see a few blogs back). It was one of those Spirit-inspired things that drop into my head on occasion, especially when God is trying to tell me something important. I didn’t understand it at first, but I’m beginning to.

1 John 4: 16-18 (NIV)
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 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.

I know there is a lot to this passage, and I don’t want to take any of it out of context. But in some way, I think it talks about this idea of Love being the opposite of Fear. If God is love and His love is made complete among us, love drives out fear. It is stated like a fact: “There is no fear in love.” Love chases fear away. So, I believe God was telling me there is a similar relationship between Hope and Shame. Hope opposes Shame; it drives it away. When we choose to receive God’s perfect love, our fear dissipates. The same is true with Hope. When we choose to receive God’s hope for our life in Jesus Christ, our shame is driven away. Our shame cannot stand in the light of the hope we have in Jesus, in who He is, all He has given for us, done for us, the way He names and adopts us, and all He calls us to be.

I am still working to fully believe this truth. Fear and Shame have both had a huge hold on my life and every day I fight to be free of them. But really, it is God doing most of the fighting and freeing work (and I am learning more how to step out of the way). He continually is teaching me more about what Hope is, and what it looks like on a practical level in my life. It looks like Gratitude, Grit, Defiance, Longing, and Victory (more on this later). Truth acts as the cement keeping bricks of hope and joy and peace together to build a tower of faith. That’s what I understand so far anyway.