Fear of the Lord

“That men may appreciate wisdom and discipline, may understand words of intelligence. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; wisdom and instruction fools despise” (Proverbs 1:2, 7).

To fear the Lord; I am finally understanding what is meant by this. I use to wonder why we should be afraid of the Lord but that is not what this means. First of all we must believe that there is a God, and as we begin to have an understanding of his all-powerfulness, the proper fear that scripture is talking about begins. I cannot even comprehend the greatness of our God, especially the extent of His love and mercy.

 “There will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:10)  God wants us all to be with him in his kingdom but he reminds us that the gate is narrow, that many will attempt to go through but will not be strong enough. How can I have the strength necessary to get through the narrow gate? By leaning on Christ, by running to him for mercy when I have sinned, and nourishing my body by frequently receiving the sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation.

I have to be disciplined in my faith. It needs attention every day because it doesn’t remain still. If I am not moving forward, then I am moving backward. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” is not true when it comes to our relationship with Christ. If I do not spend time with him every day, if he is not the person I turn to throughout my day, then it is to the detriment of my own soul. When I do not spend time with Christ, then he becomes smaller in my eyes and I become greater. I think I can do things on my own. I pat myself on the back when things are going well. And when I sin, I begin to rationalize. “It wasn’t that big of a sin” or worse yet, I begin to believe it wasn’t a sin at all. And when I do become aware of my sinfulness I feel ashamed. Ashamed that I have sinned against God, ashamed that I have neglected my relationship with Him, and I begin to think it is too late to run to Him. I fall deeper into darkness.

I love this scripture on wisdom: “Stoop your shoulders and carry her and be not irked at her bonds. With all your soul draw close to her; with all your strength keep her ways. Search her out, discover her; seek her and you will find her. Then when you have her, do not let her go; thus will you afterward find rest in her, and she will become your joy. Her fetters will be your throne of majesty; her bonds, your purple cord. You will wear her as your robe of glory, bear her as your splendid crown.” (Sirach 6:26-31)