Finish these sentences for me, " My top 3 greatest fears are ____________."
" I am afraid because ________________."
Whatever your answer is, fear is something we all have. The power of fear is strong and it could rob us out of life, joy, peace, trust and faith. If you've read, Part I, of this topic on fear, you'll see some of my top fears as a wife and a mom. These fears I battle with everyday are no joke. I can honestly say that each of those fears control me and my family. I've allowed each of my fears to make decisions for me unknowingly and sometimes knowingly.
I've also mentioned in Part I of this series, the first step God showed me in how I could be free from my fears. You could read it here.
Now, that I've done the first step, the question is, "How do I live in faith more than I live in fear everyday? What does that look like? Is it really possible not to be controlled by fear?"
To me, overcoming fear is something we HAVE to do with Jesus everyday. Mere positive thinking and even having great people around us wouldn't be enough. So here's a few biblical truths to overcoming fear:
1) Know who you belong to. Forgetting who's daughter we are and who are daddy is will only leave us feeling alone in dealing with our fears. Nothing is worst than feeling like we are alone in this! To overcome our daily fears, we have to remember who we belong to. We belong to a God so powerful and so loving. We are his! Don't let the enemy lead you into the lie that no one cares about your fears. Your loving Father, definitely does! 1 Peter 5:7,
"Cast all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." I have a fear of my kids getting hurt. I freak out when they climb "too high" at the playground or even when they are just doing the monkey bars. I drive my husband crazy at the playground when I'm constantly telling my kids to slow down or to stop. So, I "take" Jesus with me when I take my kids to the park. I give Him my anxiety of being in the playground. It sounds silly but I do a lot of praying while I'm at the playground. I believe that he cares even when my fears don't "make sense".
2) Acknowledge the fear and give it back to the Lord. Admitting our fears is embarrassing and shameful. Sometimes it's hard to admit it to ourselves or to others that we are afraid or scared. But most of the time pride can stop us from receiving healing and freedom. To get to the root of our fears we have to acknowledge each fear. What is it? What is it that I'm really afraid of? Name it and give it back to the Lord. Wrestle with it with Him. I know when fear is close or when it's looking at me face to face. I tend to choose to think about it and dwell in it and it leaves me paralyzed and unable to make the right choices. This time, I'm learning to "name" the fear and give it to Jesus right away. When the fear of loosing someone starts to creep into my thoughts, I acknowledge it right away. My prayers sounds something like this, " Jesus, I can't breath again, the thought of loosing someone in my family through a painful death is in my thoughts again. Help me right this second to overcome it and remind me of your truths. Amen." Psalm 34:4, "He delivered me from all my fears." ALL!!! Bring it ALL!!!
3) Keep in step with the Spirit. 2 Timothy 1:7, "For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." I am thankful that it is not just up to me. I have to allow the Spirit of God to lead me and fill me. Galatians 5:17-26 tell us to walk by the Spirit because the flesh is weak. Our flesh can't help but to be fearful. Our flesh worries and lives in anxiety. We need to welcome the Spirit of God in our daily lives especially when we do feel weak and fearful. We have to ask the HS to help us overcome our fears and to be filled with love, joy, hope and peace.
Jesus, I pray for those who are reading this post. May you comfort them just as you comforted me. May you give them the courage to face their fears and overcome them. Thank you, Jesus, for your love. You care deeply about our fears. Amen.
What about you? How has the Lord helped you overcome your fears? Please share and comment below so that we could encourage one another.
If you have extra time today, I encourage you to listen to this song and meditate not on your fears but on the Lord you can put all your trust in.