Faith & Fear

I’ve been having some trouble getting up in the morning. Once I get up and get going I usually start to feel better. But as I’m laying there thinking about my day, I can begin to be fearful.

Have you ever wondered why we experience fear? Of course we need fear to make us cautious in dangerous situations - to help us avoid injury and harm. But why do we have this annoying capacity for being afraid of things that aren't even threatening us?

You can label them "irrational fears," but that doesn't make them go away. Or quote FDR, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself!" But that doesn’t really help.

When I ask myself, "What does courage feel like?" I realize it feels a lot like fear. In fact, it feels exactly like fear. What's up with that? Many have observed that courage is not the absence of fear, but having the right response in the midst of it.

God has told us, "Fear not!" and "Be strong & courageous!" But why is it so hard to obey these commands? Could it be "We have not yet realized what we profess to believe?"

My wife shared this quote from a book she’s reading: "We will always live according to what our heart believes, not what our head professes to believe." - Leslie Vernick What is it we believe in our hearts? We believe that there really is something to be afraid of!

What we need are some practical steps to take when we experience fear. But wait. What we really need is to realize what kind of beliefs are manifesting in those fearful situations. We need to ask, What are the lies we have believed that cause us to give in to fear?

• I am all alone in this with no one to help me?

• I am incompetent and incapable of dealing with the situation that faces me.

• Something terrible is going to happen, that I cannot prevent and have no power to change.

• The world will end and everyone will know that it was my fault.

Only when we have identified these faulty beliefs can we replace them with right thinking. Once we have identified lies we are believing, we can ask: what is the truth that sets us free from fear?

• I am not alone! God has promised to be with me.

• I have been made competent and given everything I need for life & godliness.

• Even when bad things happen, God is in control and is working all things for our good!

• The world's not going to end until God has decided, and what's in His control is not my fault.

Whenever I'm afraid, I will believe! And then I will choose to act on what I believe! Leave a comment and let me know if this helps you get out of bed in the morning, or if you have some tips of your own to share.