In light of it being Halloween season, what better subject to talk about than fear? We all have fears. I’ll share some of mine- I have a tremendous fear of heights, I’m afraid of all bugs (regardless of their appearance), and I have serious claustrophobia. I don’t completely understand why I am afraid of these things, maybe because I don’t face them very often. It’s crazy how we can be so afraid of things we don’t really know of.
So although these fears are completely justifiable and do have a place in my life, we all have deeper fears we don’t tend to share as openly. Trust me when I say I have some heavy, much more personal fears that stir up just as much fear in my heart as spiders and roller coasters… Fears like being vulnerable, facing rejection, and failure. Fears of loneliness, dissatisfaction, and not being good enough. And fear of feeling like I never lived a life that myself or God are happy with. The list could go on and on!
Maybe these fears rule our lives more than the superficial stuff- I know for me that’s the case. In my life, claustrophobia and heights and bugs don’t disable me from life, but rather, my fear of failure does. My fears of dissatisfaction and vulnerability challenge me every day in ways most of my other fears don’t.
So my question to you is, what are you afraid of? And I’m not talking about fears of heights or snakes or anything tangible. I’m talking about the fears of your mind and heart- the things that challenge you and make you question yourself. These fears are perhaps the most harmful things to our soul, and with that being said, we must recognize that fear has to be let go for us to truly live our lives to the fullest. Fears are just fears and nothing more.
Throughout scripture, Christ reminds us that we should not be fearful. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9). Rather, we must have faith greater than our fear. Faith and fear cannot coexist and we have to make the decision to have a faith greater than what we’re worrying over. Whether that be believing in ourselves or placing faith in our Savior, faith has to be put somewhere.
With all this being said, I know days in my past I have dealt with failure and I’m bound to experience it again- that’s life! I will face rejection and not be good enough in many moments to come. But I shouldn’t remain in a place of fear every day of my life that it will happen. Why be afraid when there’s no need to be? Why fear fear?
So don’t let your fears hold you back from living; there’s a fine line between living and surviving and before you know it, you could be crossing it. Surrender your fears and live life the way it should be lived. Have faith that life will be so much sweeter- regardless of how many times you face these fears in your heart. No matter how many times you experience fear, it will have nothing on the pure joy in your heart Christ provides once you have faith greater than fear.
