Fear has risen up in my heart a lot in January. It isn’t something I normally deal with, so when fear tries to take up residence in my heart…I take notice. The sudden and tragic passing of Kobe Bryant and his daughter only added to my fear that I had been subtly noticing this past month. I literally do not know much about Kobe and his life, but the photos of all those precious souls who died so suddenly shook me. It is so much loss. That is when the what if’s started to flood my brain. What if my husband and child died suddenly?

WHAT IS FEAR?

There is good news about fear though, fear is a liar. Fear is not from God. I am not talking about healthy fear that stops you from doing something dangerous or dumb. Fear that is not from God is the fear that wants to hold you back from good things. Believing fear is what keeps so many of us cruising through life on auto pilot. We believe fear and so we just keep living our lives, never taking any real risks. The odd thing about fear is that it coincides with faith. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” Hebrews 11:1 (ESV). In order to overcome fear we have to take that first step into the unknown. Faith is stepping into the unknown, not knowing the future but trusting the one who holds the future in his hands.

This past month fear has risen in my heart every time I have tried to write something for my blog or for other articles that I am working on for publication. I unexpectedly found fear when I opened up my kids passports that came in the mail (maybe we shouldn’t take them out of the country yet, fear whispered). Fear constantly lingers over every decision we make about when to open our home again to foster children.

All of these times that I have encountered fear this past month, are things that I know God has asked me to do and equipped me for. I know this because these have been things that God keeps bringing my attention to and opening doors for. While there is some healthy fear intermixed in there that I do need to work through, it is the unhealthy fear that is trying to paralyze me. But I will not allow fear to have a grip on me. “God did not give me a spirit of fear but of power and love and sound mind” 2 Timothy 1:7. Isn’t that the best news ever?! God did not give me a spirit of fear. My spirit is one of power, love, and sound mind. I do not have to believe the lies that fear wants me to believe.

MEETING FEAR WITH FAITH

Faith is the opposite of fear. How interesting then that while fear has been invading my thoughts this month, God has been teaching me more about faith. When I start to feel fear rising, God brought this question to mind. Where am I believing that God isn’t enough?

That is the core of fear. Believing that God isn’t enough to cover whatever my fear is (ex. losing my husband and child). “But he said to me, ‘my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’” 2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV). God’s goodness and faithfulness is weaved all throughout the Bible. Over and over he shows us that he alone is enough. Fear does not have mastery over me. I get to claim faith instead. I have found that whenever I say these verses out loud when I feel fearful, my fear leaves. That is the power that he gives us when we trust in him.

“For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires” Hebrews 4:12 (NLT).

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV).

“For we walk by faith, not by sight 2 Corinthians 5:7 (ESV).

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” Isaiah 41:10 (NIV).

Have you noticed fear creeping up inside of you? Where have you allowed fear to take up residence in your heart? How can you meet fear with faith this week?