THAT F WORD
/fear.
yep, i’m talking about that f word…fear.
i hate fear. i hate it. i hate it.
i hate it because it has held me back in many areas of my life. and i’m sure it has held you back in areas as well.
i read somewhere there are 365 Bible verses on telling you not to fear: enough for every single day that you face in a year. (i’m pretty sure rick warren tweeted it, so it must be true)
when andy asked me to speak at adore, i was extremely fearful. every time i would think about it, i would get anxious and let fear rule over me. i believed lies that the enemy was telling me. i was freaaaakkkiiiinnngg ouuuuut. big time. so to counter attack this fearfulness i started seeking God about it. first i started praying silent prayers about fear. He answered. He spoke to me through many sermons, & many friends including c.s. lewis. as you know from a previous post, james & i listened to chronicles of narnia audio books while we were road tripping. i remember hearing this part during prince caspian and wanting to rewind and listen to the treasure again and again…
then after an awful pause, the deep voice said, “susan.” susan made no answer but the others thought she was crying. “you have listened to your fears, child,” said Aslan. “come, let me breathe on you. forget them. are you brave again?” -prince caspian
beautiful.
i knew that was what i needed. i needed Jesus to breathe on me. i needed Him to grant me courage, to make me bold, to give me strength. i needed Him to make me forget my fears and make me brave again.
and that’s what He did. most of the mornings after that when i would feel that f word rising up in me, i would close my eyes and ask Jesus to breathe on me. anxiousness and fear seemed to blow away as courage and strength took over.
i eventually had the honour of preaching at adore (you can listen to the sermon here) sure it scared me but knowing that Christ was there, knowing His Holy Spirit was inside me making me brave was all that i needed.
i’m not letting that stupid f word rule over me. and you shouldn’t either. next time it starts creeping up, close your eyes and let Jesus breathe on you and blow it away with His breath. soon enough, courage will take over.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind - 2 timothy 1:7
The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid? - psalm 27:1
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 41:6
be brave, He is with you!
-s.s.♥.
