"fear" God

When I was younger, this phrase always troubled me when I would read it in my Bible. Fear God? Why would I do that? Isn't He supposed to be my loving protector, the one thing I could have faith in and not fear?
I have come to the conclusion, now that I am so much older and wiser :), that fearing God is a lot easier to figure out than it is to practice. We should fear Him and His glorious, unmatchable power. We should fear what will happen when we don't choose His will... the will that gives us our best life... but we stick to our own will, leading us to destruction of heart, mind, and most importantly spirit, sometimes even to the destruction of others.
It's ironic to me that in the times I should fear God most- at the crossroads of a decison- when I should really be seeking His guidance wholeheartedly... I run.
I end up "hiding" from God, because I am afraid of what He will say. I have discovered my own will and fear that maybe His won't match up with Mine. I see the problem in this, I see the misdirected thoughts and the disordered heart. I understand the need to pray unceasingly. Instead, I close my eyes and leap, hoping I won't hit the ground too hard. I decide that, for myself, it is better to be someplace where I am complacently happy enough, than to not be there at all. Ultimately, I come to the conclusion that fearing God is not being afraid of God. I can trust God. That is why I should fear Him!

Beth Moore devotional intro: "We fear making sacrifices, but the irony is that we make a lot of sacrifices when we are not living the will of God."