"There is a difference between a God-fearing man and a man that believes in God"

..:::Irra:::..

So the other day me and Shai were having a casual conversation when she mentioned that one of her favorite male artists made a song that pretty much degrades women, referring to them as B*s and what not. She expressed how disappointed in him she was and how while making a song of that nature he emphasizes the fact that he's a "God-fearing" man -__- .... rigggghhht. Anywho, she followed up with the statement "there is a difference between a God-fearing man and a man that believes in God" *raises both hands and shouts Amen* I liked that so much I had to tweet it hehe :). Allow me to break that statement down a bit, just because a person believes in the God of the bible does not qualify them as God-fearing; It's not as person's so-called beliefs that characterizes them but their actions and their lifestyle. I can believe that Jesus died for my sins, the Ten Commandments and everything else the Christain faith/bible intels but if I don't live or atleast try to live my life in accordance with God's word then that's all I am, a believer. Now I'm not saying we all have to be perfect because it IS a struggle but at the same time certain standards are associated with the term God-fearing.

Just to get a better understanding I looked up a few words and their synonyms/antonyms starting with fear. Aside from the common definition that's tied to the negative emotion I came across this definition
     fear: reverential awe especially towards God
Then I decided to find the definition of reverential (reverent, reverence)
    reverence: 1. a feeling or attitude of deep respect tinged with awe; veneration
                      2. The outward manifestation of this feeling
                           syn: Devotion, Honor, LOVE, RESPECT
                           ant: disregard, disrespect, disdain, scorn
And lastly awe
   awe: An overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear etc produced by that which   is grand, sublime, extremely powerful or the like.
            syn: Regard, Esteem, Worship, RESPECT (there goes that respect again)
            ant: indifference
Take the the word "fear" in the phrase God-fearing and replace it with loving, respecting, honoring and I believe it paints a clearer picture. When you establish a close, non superficial relationship with God there are just some things you won't do out of love, respect and obedience. Now, I won't sit here and list all the things a God fearing man would/should and would not/should not do (I'd be sitting here forever) but I'm sure we all can tell the difference between the two, one honors God with their lifestyle, the other honors him with idle words.


I have much more to say on this issue but I'll just leave it as is ... Ciaou!

***Shai***

I can't recall the conversation that Irra and I had that lead to this topic due to the fact that when we talk, our conversation jump from one topic to another within minutes.  I do remember bringing up one of my favorite artist whom I had a ridiculous crush on for years only because I was so disappointed in him for the new song he released in which he referred to women as B*s.  Even though that's nothing new in the music industry I was more disappointed in the fact that he referred to himself  as a God fearing man, that's what rubbed me the wrong way. In my conversation with Irra I then stated that "there's a difference between a God fearing man and a man that believes in God."   When I hear God fearing the first thing that comes to mind is a man that is devoted to the Lord, he is not only talking the talk but walking the walk.  I feel as though the term God fearing is miss used as with many other words dealing with religion, I understand that no one is perfect a saying many people use to justify their mistakes but one that is also true but the word God fearing was created or should I say used to define and separate the differences between a man that follows God's lifestyle and a man that honors him with words.  I often hear different people state that they want a God fearing man/woman and others state they just want a man/woman that believes in God, that statement alone shows that a difference does exist and that those who are stating it knows the difference. I also payed attention to the type of people that made the two different statements, those who want a God fearing man/woman were those who are living a lifestyle according to God while the one's who stated they just want  a man/woman who believes in God are living a lifestyle of this world, has no relationship with God but believes in him. All in all there's a difference between a God fearing man and a man that believes in God.
B blesssed and stay positive...Muah