Fear Not! You're Loved!

Remember as a child being afraid? To whom did you run? We usually run to those whom we know love us. John writes in 1 John 4:18 that 'Perfect love casts out fear!' Love is the antidote to fear. When the angel appeared to Mary to ask her permission to be the mother of the Messiah, Mary was fearful and full of questions. The angel assured her that she has found favor with God-- or as one commentator puts it, 'Fear not! You're loved!' But how does Mary experience God's love? In experiencing God's love, Mary is overtaken by God's grace, overshadowed by God's presence and power, and overwhelmed with God's blessing. It's the same way in which we experience God's love in our lives-- for we too are overtaken by God's grace, overshadowed by God's presence and power, and overwhelmed with God's blessings each and every day. Therefore, we do not fear for we are loved.