the following statement  is from a book by Tom clancy called A
Debt Of Honor.  It was made by an elderly admiral retired from the
Navy, though still employed as a high ranking official of the
Central Intelligence Agency, just before his death.  He was
speaking from his death bed to a character in the story by the
name of Jack Ryan, also a member of the C I A, who later would
become the president of the United States through a national
tragedy.  Here's what the old dying man had to say.

     "When they made you a marine lieutenant, you swore an oath
before God.  I understand why we do that now.  It's a help; not a
threat.  It's something to remind you how important words are.
Ideas are important; principles are important; words are
important.  Your word is the most important of all.  Your word is
who you are."

     It was that very last phrase, "Your word is who you are,"
which caught my attention.  Last year, the Lord was ministering to
me personally about the importance of words as it relates to what
I confess in my life as a Christian.  When I read this book, which
is not a Christian book of course, I was magnetized by that
statement.  If we will consider the power of our own words as it
relates to God's Word and the promises we find in His eternal
Word, we will watch what we say and be careful of those things we
do not say but which need uttered.

     Now, recently I was reading another book and I want to quote
a part of the book which the Lord again used to get my attention.
It is taken from a book called Short grass Song, a western, by
Mike Blakely.

     The following statement was made in the mind of a young man
who was having trouble finding himself in life.  His brother was a
preacher, of sorts, and this young man was talking to a black man
who helped run their ranch.  The youth was telling the black man
about his fears that perhaps he did not believe in God as did his
brother.  The black man explained to him that if he feared he
might go to hell, which the young man had already confess to the
black man as they talked one afternoon, then he must believe in
God; else he would not be afraid of going to hell.  The young man,
in his own personal thoughts, considered the following.

     "To fear was to believe.  Not just to profess belief, but to
feel it.  To fear God was to believe in God.  To believe in God
was to fear nothing."

     Now, I am not suggesting I fully agree with this philosophy,
but the last two statements are powerful.  Read them again.  "To
fear God was to believe in God.  To believe in God was to fear
nothing."  Often I have heard people confused about what it really
means to fear God.  I like what this young man determined in his
heart and that is, to fear God was to believe in God.
Theologically, and Biblically, fear goes beyond belief, of course,
but the statement is true.  If you believe in god, you will fear
Him.  If someone does not fear God, you can bet he doesn't really
believe in Him no matter what he says.

     Now, this leads to the last statement the young cowboy made.
To believe in God was to fear nothing.  I don't believe I have
ever heard a more powerful statement in my life.  I lived with
fear for almost three years, as some of you have heard me testify,
and believe me when I say, it wasn't any fun.  Discouragement,
depression, nightmares, suicidal thoughts, insomnia, illnesses,
excessive eating, and a whole bunch of other things all were
rooted in fear.  I am certainly not saying I have fear conquered
but Jesus does in my behalf and perhaps it is about time we start
believing in Him instead of the things we fear.

     Anyhow, I wanted to share these two powerful statements which
really made me stop and think.  I hope it has some meaning to
others.

Phil.