Fear is real. We all have areas in our lives where we are fearful. I am afraid of heights. I also have a fear of failure. But the problem with fear is that it causes us to not live life to the fullest. Fear causes us to hold back. And while President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, "the only thing to fear is fear itself," the reality is that we do allow ourselves to have fear.
Fear can be paralyzing. It can rob us of our peace and joy. It can keep us from stepping out in faith to do what we know we should do. If you were to look at the life of King David (from the Bible), you would see that David had many opportunities to fear. As a shepherd he regularly encountered wild animals threatening his sheep. He had to overcome his fear to fight them off. He ended up fighting a giant named Goliath, who was much bigger and stronger than he was. He had to overcome his faith as he defeated Goliath with a sling shot and 3 stones.
In the book of Psalms, David wrote a very important Psalm in regards to conquering fear through prayer. Let's look at this prayer in Psalm 27:1-3:
"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? 2 When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident."
In this prayer David declared that even when evil was around him and threatened him, he would remain confident because God was there to protect him. As David said, "The Lord is my light and my salvation." Where do you feel some fear? I know I need to trust God to help me to be successful in my endeavors as I trust him to lead me even when others around me attack me. How wonderful it is to know that with God I can overcome my fear!
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