Fear is a Liar

“Faith is a place of mystery, where we find the courage to believe in what we cannot see and the strength to let go of our fear of uncertainty.”  -Brene Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection

I lived in fear for many years after his affair. I was so scared I was going to lose everything, my family, my financial security, my home, everything. I could feel it all slipping away. So, I controlled. I controlled everything I could- him, our money, the boys. I was trying so hard to keep it together all by myself. Like I said before, I felt like I had lost my faith because God had left me, so I had to do it by myself. I was trying to manufacture a life for me and my family instead of just having faith that God had it, and that the life He had in store for me would be so much better than the one I was trying to hold on to.

Fear lies to us. It tells us we’re not enough or maybe we’re too much. It tells us we’re not pretty, not funny, or not good enough. Maybe fear says we’re too weak to fight for what we want, or we’re too lonely to ever be happy. It tells us we’re unlovable, and that’s the worst thing we can feel. Fear forces us to be reactive. Rather than having trust and faith in God and waiting for His plan, fear makes us do things we never wanted to do, just so we are doing something, anything to feel like we have some control. Fear compels us to search for momentary happiness and give up a lifetime of joy.

We have a choice in life. We can choose to grow, or we can choose to die. I don’t just mean physically; I mean emotionally and spiritually. When we live in fear, we are choosing not to believe that God has us in his arms, that He can take care of us, and that He knows what is best for our lives. Fear makes us lose faith that God is in control. We are choosing not to grow when we live in fear and believe the lies of fear. Letting go of that fear allows us to see the truth and strive to go after that truth. It allows us to trust God, follow Him, and grow to be a better person. Isn’t that what we all really want? To be a better person than we were the day before? Shouldn’t we all be striving every day to learn something new that will make us kinder and more loving to the people around us? Shouldn’t we all be working towards loving each other as God commanded rather than trying to control the actions and ideals of those around us? If we let go of the fear that controls us, we can let go of our attempts to control everything else. We have two choices, growing or dying. Will you choose faith or fear?

“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