Are you afraid to talk to God?

Let me start by asking a simple, yet profound question, one I used to mull over often: Am I afraid to talk to God? Woah, woah, woah does that even make sense? What sort of a question is this? If that’s your first reaction, I understand. But I’ve come to believe this is one of those questions we need to ask honestly. The issue isn’t fear of God Himself, but whether we sometimes avoid God because we’re afraid of what obedience of listening and following Him might cost us.

I carried this fear for a season. After giving my life to Christ, my life went through many twists and turns. Eventually, things settled. Life was good. My family was happy. And somewhere along the way, I realized I didn’t really want to go back to God to hear what He might say next, because I wasn’t sure I was ready for another move. That realization led me to something striking: in Scripture, none of God’s people were ever truly ready when His call came. Moses, Abraham, Jonah - none of them felt prepared, yet God called them anyway. While they didn’t feel ready, God knew they were. And yet, we try so hard to stabilize and control the life God has given us.

Let me explain with a simple example. Think about diaper duty when you have an infant. I have two daughters, born just a few years apart, and I’m glad those years were done within a short span. But imagine having kids with a gap of four to six years. Just when you feel free again, you’re suddenly back to square one. Most of us would hesitate, I'm glad that season is done.

Sometimes, our reluctance to hear God isn’t about fear of Him—it’s about fear of starting a season we thought was already finished. We see something similar in Exodus 34. This is where the covenant is renewed, and Moses comes down the mountain with the new tablets. His face is shining from being in God’s presence, yet instead of drawing closer, the people step back. Scripture says they were afraid to come near him. This wasn’t fear of judgment; it was fear of proximity. God was still speaking, still leading, still calling them forward, and that made them uncomfortable. So Moses put a veil over his face. The people were more comfortable with a filtered reflection of God than with direct exposure. Yet Scripture makes an important distinction, whenever Moses went in to speak with the Lord, he removed the veil. The veil was never for God—it was for the people.

Paul later reflects on this moment in 2 Corinthians 3. He explains that the veil wasn’t hiding God’s glory; it revealed the condition of their hearts. Wherever hearts resist God’s voice, a veil remains. But the moment one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. In Christ, we no longer stand back in fear, we stand unveiled. And as we go closer and closer to Him, we are transformed from glory to glory.

So as you read this, I invite you to ask yourself honestly: is there a veil you’ve placed between you and God? Not because you fear Him, but because you fear where obedience might lead? The glory we often step back from is the very glory meant to lead us forward. Be willing to remove the veil, and be ready for His next move.