Fearful Living or Faithful Living

I think I can safely assume I’m not alone when I say I’m often my own worst enemy. Maybe it’s partially due to being a type A personality. And then again, maybe that’s just something on which to place blame.

I’m do know, however, that I’m harder on myself than anyone else could ever come close to being. If someone would expect me to be good at something, I would expect from myself nothing less than perfection. And that achieves nothing except what can be summed up into one word–FEAR.  That four-letter “F” word that prevents joyful living.

• Fear of failure.
• Fear of trying something new in case I fail.
• Fear at beginning a project in case I cannot finish.
• Fear of making a commitment in case I can’t follow through.
• Fear of doing anything at all in case I can’t do it perfectly.
• Fear of doing something that would cause anything other than positive attention.
• Fear of saying something that may make me look unintelligent.
• Fear of what people are thinking–or not thinking.
• Fear of being ‘less-than’ what is expected of me.
• Fear of what happened–or what almost happened–yesterday.

I tend to expect more from myself than I would ever expect from others, which can be viewed in two ways – lack of self confidence or thinking I’m more competent than others. And I have to admit, neither is an attractive character trait.

The common denominator of all  these fears is that it robs me of what is here and now. It prevents me from the peace of living in the moment, truly experiencing life. Fear is nothing more than lack of faith. And lack of faith separates us from God. And that is perhaps the only thing to truly fear. Separation from the only One who can truly protect us.

So while fearful living isn’t healthy, robbing us of life one painful moment at a time, the blessing is the problem lies in, and within, each one of us who has made fear a part of our daily lives. Because if the problem lies with others or with circumstances that we cannot change, we’re sunk. What is within our own lives, our own heart, our own mind, is the only thing we have the power to change. And we get that power through faith in God. And while fear is lack of faith, faith is lack of fear. Several times every day we can choose fear or we can choose faith. I think I’ll make it my priority to choose faith.

Grace to you.