Choosing Faith Over FearSample

# Stop Being Intimidated ## ‘God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity.’ 2 Timothy 1:7 NLT The Bible says, ‘Without faith it is impossible to please God’ (Hebrews 11:6 NIV). So, don’t get involved in anything that doesn’t require you to use your faith. The key to momentum is always having something to look forward to and believe God for. You either venture, or you vegetate. Jesus deliberately sent His disciples into a storm. Why? To develop their faith, and show them that with Him on board you can get through anything! God will keep exposing you to difficult situations because He knows it’s the only way your faith will grow. Nineteenth-century American preacher and abolitionist Phillips Brooks wrote, ‘Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your power, pray for power equal to your tasks.’ You don’t tap into God’s resources until you attempt something that seems humanly impossible. That’s when you discover: ‘I can do everything God asks me to do with the help of Christ who gives me the strength and power’ (Philippians 4:13 TLB). All progress involves risk. In baseball, you can’t steal second base while your foot’s still on first base. And progress involves overcoming fear. One day when David was tending his sheep, ‘there came a lion’ (1 Samuel 17:34 KJV). But in God’s strength he defeated it – plus a bear, and later a giant called Goliath. That lion was just an opportunity in disguise. If David had wavered or run away, he’d have missed his chance to become king of Israel. So, when a lion of fear comes into your life, recognise it for what it is: an opportunity from God to rise up in faith and conquer it. Prayer Point: Pray for anyone going through a difficult time right now. Ask that they would see that time as an opportunity to experience God’s strength. Acknowledgements: Mason, John, Believe You Can, 167, 168.