Browse the internet and you can find many different acronyms for the word “fear”. I’m going to confess this to you today. My biggest fear in the world is speaking! I know, I know, that’s a little risky for me to admit that to you, but it’s true. Over the past three years, though, God has begun preparing me to do just that!
I have been working, preparing, and biting my nails at the thought of doing a Facebook live for Transforming Normal. It has been something I have thought about and dreaded at the same time. I’ve prayed about it and procrastinated. Recently I asked a dear friend of mine, “If I were to do a Facebook live video what would you want to hear me talk about.” After thinking about it for a little while, she sent me a text and said, “Fear.”
That’s ironic, isn’t it? Since I’m fearful of even doing a live video, fear is the perfect topic. Isn’t God amazing how He works things out? So, this is it. I’ve prayed, procrastinated, and prepared long enough. It’s time for me to just do it.
After doing a little Google research over acronyms for “fear”, I found my favorite:
F. Face E. Everything A. and R. Rise
My pastor has been known to say more than once, “Fear and faith do not go together.” He is so right. Fear is actually lack of trust. If I say I have faith, but I fear something; the future, the present, what people think, what people are going to say, anything really; then I don’t truly have faith and trust that God is going to take care of things.
Depending on your version of the Bible, “Do not fear” is stated over 100 times. It must be a pretty important message we need to hear and know if God had it placed there that many times. So why are we so fearful?
For me, it has to do with insecurities and a little pride. Gasp! Did I just say PRIDE? Yes, I did. Pride gets in our way more than we realize. In part, pride is this; a feeling or deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one's own achievements. If I am fearful of what people are going to say about me or how they will perceive me, then this has to do with damaging my pride or self-esteem. This is the direct opposite of what humility is. Humility is a modest or low view of one's own importance.
Sometimes God must humble us in order to keep our pride in check. So maybe someone will not agree with me. Maybe I will stumble over my words as I am speaking. Maybe I’ll trip and fall as I am walking across a room (been there and done that!). Things happen and how we respond to things is what truly matters. God wants us to have faith in Him. Have faith that He will take care of our needs (Phil. 4:19). That’s His promise to us, right? Right, but He goes even further than that!
In reading Isaiah 61, we are learning about the prophecy of the coming Messiah. Isaiah is revealing that God is bringing a chosen King to deliver God’s people. I pick up in verse 3,
“…to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord to glorify him.”
By facing everything and rising, God is bringing us out of the ashes. Let this be an encouragement to you right now. Fear comes from Satan planting doubt seeds in our minds, but Faith comes from God planting seeds of His glory within us to shine His light.
No matter what you are facing right now, no matter how big or small, remember this from Joshua 1:9:
“Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
That is a promise from God. He is with us wherever we go and whatever we do.
So, I faced my fear and held my first Facebook Live event for the Transforming Normal page. How did it go? It went just fine. I was obviously a bit nervous at first, but once I got going, nothing catastrophic happened.
Head on over to the Facebook video and let me know your thoughts on my first live event. I'd love to hear from you! You can also leave a comment here! Let's engage in conversation! What fears do you feel are holding you back?
