Overcoming Fear - Part 2 - F-E-A-R

Caption: Maggie in a non-fearful moment

F - E - A - R. It's been called "False Evidence Appearing Real." But what if the "fear" isn't "false evidence."

What if something you're dreading actually happens. When things we are "afraid" will happen actually do...we get a bad health report, we lose our job, our credit report takes a tumble, a loved one dies, whatever it is - when it happens, what can we do?

Since we can't control the event - we do something else. We control our response! And you know what? That's actually the best thing we can do. What should our response be?

1) Pray - and this is the BEST thing we can do. Prayer centers us. Prayer gets our minds off ourselves and onto God. Prayer puts our spirits in charge. Prayer brings peace.

2) Read the Word - often God will bring us peace and comfort through the reading of His holy Word. He'll tell us right where to go to get our answer. It always amazes me when I'm puzzling about something, God will quietly tell me just where to go to find peace.

3) Worship - this is also important. If we can praise the Lord for any and all circumstances in our lives, we build Him up in our hearts. Whether we sing or play an instrument or we listen to a worship CD - this is important to do on a daily basis, but especially when fear hits us.

4) Breathe in the Life of the Spirit of God - Fear comes to our minds, our emotions. If we breathe in the life of the Holy Spirit - our spirits rise up and take control of our emotions. Our spirits, because the Holy Spirit lives in us, can overcome anything. It is through our spirits, that peace comes to our minds.

5) Take thoughts captive - sometimes, I have literally said this over and over to myself out loud. When a mental attack comes after taking spiritual ground, we need to remember that we don't wrestle against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers. This also helps to calm us and helps our spirits take control of our bodies and emotions.

What fears have you had to face lately? Is it fear of the future, fear of non-provision, fear of a relationship going sour, or fear that you've missed it? Post a comment and let me know. We're discussing fear for another couple of weeks. The week of September 8th, I'm posting a book review of Max Lucado's newest book, Fearless.