I vould never getnpast that the god who loved me was bent on punishing me with hell forever unless I was a "Slave" to Christ. Just didn't add up.

Fear has historically and etymologically always only had two meanings
Fear from Old English fær "calamity, sudden danger, peril, sudden attack," from Proto-Germanic *feraz "danger"
And
Old English færan "to plot against," from Old Norse færa "to taunt." used to mean "to drive away by inducing fear," attested early 15c.

Fear of God is quite literally that in the liturgical and theological sense, terror of that which cannot be stood against, capitulation and love for the undeniable overlord demanding appeasement and worship.

The churches have always ruled by fear and terror, fear of Hell, fear of the inquisition, fear of the power of the church as representative of god incarnate.

Have fun

Glad you’re enjoying the site and that you managed to let reason win over your Methodist teachings. I have friends and relatives of my late husband who are Methodists and I must say they are all lovely people who do not shout much about their beliefs, but go quietly about their faith. The fear of God’s wrath and going to hell is what religion uses to keep believers in line and it seems to have worked and still does...to keep God’s love you must follow the rules or all hell will break out and you will be eternally cast out! It’s a strong deterrent, and if you add that if you follow the rules you will also have his blessings showered on you and an everlasting future in heaven, it becomes almost irresistible to go against.

Well, in fairness, fearing god is meant to convey reverence / awe / respect; it's an antiquated use of the word. It's not literal fear. Of course ... some Christians DO believe in using their deity to terrorize and control others, and in their ignorance think that IS the fear of god. Also ... the scriptures depict Yahweh as a tyrant, and a rather petulant one at that, who smites people over ridiculous things. So living in literal fear of god is a very real and daily thing for many Christians. It is just not based on the verses that talk about "fearing god". Is that perfectly unclear now?