Refuse to live in fear (1)

Advice columnist Ann Landers received about ten thousand letters every month. When asked to name the most common problem in her readers’ lives, she said, ‘Fear! People are afraid of losing their health, their wealth, and their loved ones. People are afraid of life itself.’ If you allow it to, fear will control you. ‘Fear involves torment’, and until the power of fear is broken, it will keep tormenting you. When fear rules your life, you cannot enjoy anything you do. And you certainly can’t enjoy God’s blessings. Dr Caroline Leaf says that fear triggers ‘more than 1,400 known physical and chemical responses and activates more than thirty different hormones and neurotransmitters.’ It’s at the root of all our stress. When fear causes a chronic stress reaction in us, it actually ‘marinates’ our body in chemicals that can be harmful in large amounts. This, of course, is terribly unhealthy and threatening to our physical well-being. The fear of not being accepted by others can make you develop a phony personality, stifling your true self and hiding who God made you to be. The fear of failure will prevent you from trying new things or stretching yourself to do more than you feel comfortable doing. The fear of the future can cause you not to enjoy your life today. Fear is a spirit, and it doesn’t come from God. ‘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 NKJV). Reject the spirit of fear. Draw on God’s power, believe He loves you unconditionally, and begin to exercise the ‘sound mind’ He has given you. Today, refuse to live in fear.