The fear of man is defined from a Biblical standpoint, a fear that brings a constant pre-occupation of what others think of you. The Bible says that fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety (Prov. 29:25). Does your life revolve around what people think about you or what God thinks about you? Go through the list below and determine how much of your life is in other people’s hands. Determine to trust God and live for His purposes and dreams so your life is full of purpose, joy and significance.

• Are you more concerned about men’s opinion of you or God’s opinion of you? – Do you lie to protect your image, position, or status?

• Do you abstain from doing what God has called you to avoid the pain of rejection?

• Do you feel a knot in your stomach every time someone disagrees with you?

• Are you embarrassed easily?

• Are you devastated by rejection?

• Is your respect and admiration of people based upon their approval of you? – Are you intimidated by people who have stronger convictions than you?

• Does your insecurity lead you to criticize others?

• Does your audience dictate the viewpoint you take on a specific issue?

• Do you change, understate, or overstate your views in order to gain favor with men? – Are you afraid to confront wrongdoing because of possible negative results?

• Are you silent in opportunities to speak up to defend a just cause?

• Do you tolerate malicious slander for fear of negative repercussions if you speak out? – Do you say negative things about others to agree with those who hold these views?

• Whose reputation is more important: Yours or God’s?

• Does your dread of “being found out” keep you from being honest about your sins?

• When a friend drifts away into moral calamity, do you hesitate to confront for fear of being scorned?

• Do you compromise your values or beliefs to find acceptance with your friends? – Is it okay with you if your friends shun you because you choose to honor God? – Are you always chasing fads because you want to fit in?

• What is more valuable to you: Your social image or your identity in Christ?

• Are you obsessed with having the right clothes, the right look, the right gadgets, the right car, or the right house?

• Are you afraid to discipline your children because you need their approval?

• Do you discipline your children because you don’t want them to make you look bad?

• Do you allow lies and mis-statements because you are afraid of conflict?

• Do you have to have the “last word” even when your opinion is unrequested?

• Have you ever been strongly compelled to share with someone about Jesus, but found yourself crippled by the fear of rejection?

• Refuse to let fear sit on the throne of your heart and dictate to you where to find comfort in difficult situations. Trust God and make Him your protector and source of safety. If you always do what is right, with the right heart, everything will be alright.

According to God's word, letting God's Spirit control our minds leads to life and peace; letting the flesh dominate our minds leads to turmoil and death (Romans 8:5-6). Our lives will go in the direction of our strongest thoughts. Our inner dialogue affects the overall condition of our lives, empowering or hindering God's purpose in us. 

Renew your mind: 

1. Confront your most common negative thoughts (defeat, failure, critical spirit, judgments, hatred, loneliness, rejection, abandonment, fear, doubt, etc.).
2. Capture them by commanding these sinful thoughts to stop immediately, disabling their ability to invade your mind, your will, and emotions.
3. Confess God Thoughts based on God's word (see list below) to demolish the strongholds of destructive thinking. Begin to develop the discipline of replacing negative thoughts with Spirit led, Christ centered, God Thoughts. Generate your own custom list of God Thoughts and begin to declare these truths aloud before you start your day, so you can be transformed into a new person by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:2).  
   

You give me peace in spite of all my circumstances.

"And Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and named it Yahweh-Shalom (which means “the Lord is peace”). The altar remains in Ophrah in the land of the clan of Abiezer to this day." - JUDGES 6:24

JEHOVA YIREH | GOD IS MY PROVIDER

You meet all my needs according to goodness!

"Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means 'the Lord will provide'). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.' "  - GEN. 22:14

JEHOVA SHAMMAH | GOD IS PRESENT WITH ME

The Catholic church had the custom of praying to dead saints (necromancy) and remembering the martyrs of the faith. They were so many of them that coming up with one day to honor all of them at the same time was practical. The leaders of the Catholic church in alliance with the Roman government agreed to use the Samhain festival, to help drown the tradition of witches and ghouls and shift the attention of the people to remembering dead saints and praying for dead souls to be liberated from purgatory (a practice that contradicts the teachings of the Bible). This day was called All Saints Day or All Hallows Eve or Holy Evening (which morphed into today's word Halloween), and was celebrated on November 1st (one day after October 31). Unfortunately, today's culture celebrates Holy Evening (or Halloween) in the same way the Celtics did back then. Halloween intended to replace Samhaim, but both traditions were sprinkled with heresy and occult practices that the Bible condemns and prohibits. 

STORY LINE OF HOW HALLOWEEN CAME ABOUT

Romans conquered the Irish and the Celts in the first century, and their traditions got mixed: So Sahmain got mixed with two other Roman feasts for the dead: Feralia (celebrated on February 21) and Pomona the goddess of fertility (celebrated on Nov. 1). These Roman festivities were filled with debauchery, drunkenness, and orgies.

The Catholic church, through political agreement with the Roman government decided to take over the Roman day of the dead and replace it with a day where all dead saints and martyrs of the Christian faith could be honored and remembered. They called it All Saints Day. The date of this celebration was changed several times in history and in 741 AD, Pope Gregory III decided to move All Saints Day to November 1st to highjack the pagan Celtic festivity of Samhain. Unfortunately, by 988, the Catholic church believers began celebrating this day with huge bonfires, parades and costumes, masquerading as dead spirits, saints, angels, and demons, in much resemblance to the Celtic pagan celebration. 

During the Irish potato famine in 1846, many Irish and Celt people migrated into America, and they brought with them the Samhain festival, which more profoundly influenced Halloween with occult practices. Today, Halloween is considered the high holy day of Satanists, where many evil and godless acts are performed. 

If an ancient Celt would participate in today's Halloween celebrations, he would feel right at home. The name Halloween means holy evening, but the current celebration of Halloween today can't be referred to as a holy evening. On the contrary, it has become the darkest day of the year and the prime day for the glorification of evil. 

Christians should use October 31 and the days leading to it as an opportunity for instruction, intercession, communion, and adoration. We should dress up with love and the armor of God to pray for the deliverance of living souls from the power and consequences of sin. The trick is to treat Halloween as a strategic opportunity for redemption and not demonic glorification.